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OF THE

University of Illinois. *

VOLUME., ,

V, ' 2» ‘ '

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CLASS.

BOOK.

Q.551 TJ

If * Accession No.

Title for subject entry. Author title. Series title,

LIBRARY CATALOGUE SLIPS.

Powell (John Wesley).

[United States. Department of the interior. ( U. S. geological survey.)]

[United States. Department of the interior. (JJ. S. geological survey.)]

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT

OF THE

SECRETARY

TO THE

OF THE INTERIOR

15 Y

J. W. POWELL

DIRECTOR

Part I — GEOLOGY

WASHINGTON

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

1891 W

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT

OF THE

DIRECTOR

OF THE

UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Part I.-GEOLOGY.

Ill

T&MO

$.SS1

V./3/7

cop -7

CONTENTS.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR,

Page.

Letter of transmittal . 1

Progress of topographic work . 3

Atlas sheets . 5

Organization . 5

Surveys east of the one hundredth meridian . 5

Surveys west of the one hundredth meridian . 6

Engraving . 7

Progress of geologic work . 8

Progress of paleontologic work . 9

Progress in accessory work . 13

Chemistry and physics . 13

Statistics of mineral products . 1

Illustrations . 16

Engraving and printing . 16

Publications . 17

Library . 17

Disbursements . ■ 18

Acknowledgments . 19

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS.

Report of Mr. Henry Gannett . 23

Mr. A. H. Thompson . 42

Mr. G. K. Gilbert . 52

Prof. N. S. Shaler . 66

Mr. Raphael Pumpelly . 67

Mr. W. J. McGee . 70

Mr. Bailey Willis . 78

Mr. George H. Eldridge . 82

Prof. C. R. Van Hise . 84

Dr. T. C. Chamberlin . 88

Mr. W. P. Jenney . 1 . 90

Mr. A. C. Peale . 91

Mr. Arnold Hague . 92

Mr. S. F. Emmons . 96

Mr. J. S. Diller . 100

Mr. G. F. Becker . 101

Mr. C. D. Walcott . 106

Prof. Alpheus Hyatt . Ill

Mr. C. A. White . 112

Mr. W. H. Dali . 115

Prof. O. C. Marsh . 118

CONTENTS.

Page.

Report of Mr. Lester F. Ward . 120

Prof. Samuel H. Scudder . 125

Mr. P. W. Clarke . 127

Mr. David T. Day . 129

Mr. F. H. Newell . • . 134

Mr. De Lancey W. Gill . 136

Mr. S. J. Iviibel . 138

Mr. W. A. Croffut . 141

Mr. Charles C. Darwin . 142

Mr. W. F. Morsell . 145

Mr. Jno. D. McChesney . 146

ACCOMPANYING PAPERS.

THE ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS. BY NATHANIEL SOUTHGATE SHALER.

Prefatory note . 219

Nature and origin of soils . 221

Processes of soil formation . 230

Cliff talus soils . 232

Glaciated soils . ; . 236

Volcanic soils . 239

Soils of newly elevated ocean bottoms . 245

Physiology of soils . 250

Effect of animals and plants on soils . 268

Effect of certain geologic conditions of soils . 287

Glacial aggregation . 288

Alluvial aggregation . 288

Overplacement . 296

Inheritance . 300

Certain peculiar soil conditions . 306

Swamp soils . 311

Marine marshes . 317

Tule lands . 320

Ancient soils . 321

Prairie soils . 323

Wind-blown soils . 326

Action and reaction of man and the soil . 329

Effects of soil on health . 340

Man’s duty to the earth . 344

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION, BY W J MrGEE.

Chapter I. The area occupied by the formation . 353

The physiographic provinces . 353

The configuration of the coastal plain . . . 360

The general geology of the coastal plain . 380

The method of classification . 380

The Columbia formation . 384

The Grand Gulf formation . 408

The Chesapeake formation . 410

The Vicksburg- Jackson limestone . 412

The Claiborne-Meridian . 413

The Lignitic deposits . 415

The Pamunkey formation . 418

CONTENTS.

VII

Page.

Chapter I. The area occupied by the formation — Continued.

The general geology, etc. — Continued.

The tipper Cretaceous . 419

The Severn formation . 121

The Potomac and Tuscaloosa formations . 421

R6sum6 . 424

Chapter II. The features of the formation . 430

The features in detail . 130

The general features . 439

Chapter III. Definition and synonymy of the formation . 497

Definition . 497

Synonymy . 498

Chapter IV. Material resources of the formation . 503

State of the survey . . 503

Soils . 503

Siliceous clays . 505

Gravel . 506

Iron . 506

Chapter V. The history recorded in the formation . 507

The antecedent physiography . 507

The Lafayette deposition . 508

The Lafayette degradation . 511

The burial of the Lafayette . 514

The relations of the continent movements . 515

TIIK NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT DURING CAMBRIAN TIME, BY CHARLES DOOLITTLE

WALCOTT.

Introductory observations . 529

Deposition of sediments . 532

Character and extent of the sediments . 535

Pre-Cambrian land . 540

Atlantic coast province . 541

Appalachian province . 542

Rocky Mountain province . 543

Interior continental province . 543

Resume . 543

Geographic distribution . 545

Surface of the pre-Cambrian land . 546

Atlantic coast province . 546

Appalachian province . 548

Rocky Mountain province . 551

Interior continental province . 554

Continental features . 557

Dana . 557

Chamberlin . 561

Walcott . 562

Middle Cambrian land . 563

Post-Cambrian land . 565

Conclusions . 567

THE ERUPTIVE ROCKS OF ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN, YELLOW¬

STONE NATIONAL PARK, BY JOSEPH PAXSON IDDINGS.

Introduction . 577

Geological sketch of the region . 578

VIII

CONTENTS.

Page.

Electric Peak . 579

Geological description . 579

Geological map . 581

The eruptive rocks of Electric Peak . . . . 582

Use of the terms porphyrite and porphyry . 582

Sheet rocks . 584

Dike and stock rocks . 586

The dike rocks and certain contact facies of the stock . 588

The stock rocks and apophyses . 595

Intergrowth of hornblende and pyroxene in glassy rocks . 610

Quartz-mica-diorite-porphyrite . 617

General consideration of the mineral and chemical composition of the

intrusive rocks . . . 619

Sepulchre Mountain . 633

Geological description . 633

The volcanic rocks of Sepulchre Mountain . 634

The lower breccia . 634

The upper breccia . 635

The dike rocks . 640

General consideration of the mineral and chemical composition of the

eruptive rocks . 647

Comparison of the rocks from the two localities . . . 650

Correlation of the rocks on a chemical basis . 653

Etfect of mineralizing agents . 658

Application to the classification of igneous rocks . 660

Appendix . 664

Index to volume . 665

ILLUSTRATIONS.

I’age.

Pl. I. Map of the United States showing the progess of the topo¬
graphic survey during 1890-’91 . In pocket.

II. View on the eastern shore of Cape Ann, Massachusetts, showing

shore line stripped of soil materials by wave action . 226

III. Glaciated rock surface fromw7hich the thin soil has been swept

away, eastern Massachusetts . 228

IV. Effect of glacial action on a surface which has not yet been

re-covered by soil . 230

V. Precipices with talus of rock fragments passing downward into

rude alluvial terraces . 232

VI. View showing varied rate of decay of talus formation in Tri-

assic sandstone schist near Fort Wingate, New Mexico . 234

VII. Process of decay of soft rocks which are easily worn by flowing

water . 236

VIII. Earthquake fissure in Arizona, showing the manner in which

these shocks may rupture the surface . 238

IX. Process of decay in talus formation in much-jointed granitic

rock, Mount Lyell, Sierra Nevada. California . 240

X. View showing the process of rock decay where the material

contains solid portions which are not readily corroded . 242

XI. View of a mountain valley showing coalesced talus slopes

through which the river finds its way below the surface .... 244

XII. Talus deposits in a mountain gorge where the stream has

slight cutting power, Lake Canyon, California . 246

XIII. Process of erosion of rather soft rock, the talus from which is

invading forest . 248

XIV. Cliffs of soft rock without distinct talus . 250

XV. Morainal front in eastern Massachusetts, showing the way in

which vegetation occupies a bowlder strewn surface . 252

XVI. Drumlins or lenticular hills in eastern Massachusetts, showing

the arched outlines of these deposits . 254

XVII. Aspect of a surface on which lie extinct volcanoes; also show¬
ing details of talus structure . 256

XVIII. View showing rapid decay of lava . 258

XIX. Process of decay of obsidian or glassy laAras near Mono Lake,

California . 260

XX. Margin of a lava stream overflowing soil occupied by vegeta¬
tion . 262

XXL Summit of Mount Vesuvius, showing cone of coarse volcanic

ash lying upon lava which occupies the foreground . 264

XXII. View near caves of Luray, Virginia, showing the character of

surface in a country underlaid by caverns . 266

ILLUSTRATIONS.

Page.

Pl. XXIII. Broad alluvial valley in a mountainous district, the area partly

improved by irrigation ditches . 290

XXIV. View of a mountain valley, showing the beginnings of the river

alluvial plains . 292

XXV. Beginnings of alluvial terraces in the upper part of the Cumber¬
land River Valley, Kentucky . 294

XXVI. Ox-bow swing of a river in an alluvial plain : the Ganges, India. 296
XXVII. View in the Dismal Swamp of Virginia, showing character of

vegetation in that distri ct . 312

XXVIII. Reclaimed lields iu the central portion of the Dismal Swamp,

Virginia . 314

XXIX. Vegetation in the fresh-water swamps of central Florida . 316

XXX. Form of surface in an elevated region south of the glaciated belt. 330

XXXI. View showing the gradual passage from rock to soil . 332

XXXII. Physiography of the coastal plain of southeastern United

States . In pocket.

XXXIII. Columbia and Potomac formations on Ensor street, between

Preston and Biddle, Baltimore . 386

XXXIV. Relations of Lafayette and Tuscaloosa formations; Cotton-

dale, Alabama . 474

XXXV. Tvpical exposure of the Lafayette, near the Chattahoochee

River . 480

XXXVI. Relations of Columbia, Lafayette and Potomac formations;

Columbia, South Carolina . 484

XXXVII. Typical exposure of the Lafayette formation in the District

of Columbia . 488

XXXVIII. Areal distribution of Columbia and Lafayette forma¬
tions . In pocket.

XXXIX. Physiography of the coastal plain during the Lafayette

period . In pocket.

XL. Physiography of the coastal plain during post-Lafayette and

pre-Columbia period . In pocket.

XLI. Physiography of the coastal plain during the Columbia

period . In pocket.

XL1I. Map to illustrate the relative amount of sedimentation within
the typical geological provinces of North America during

Cambrian time . 532

XLIII. Hypothetical map of the North American Continent at the be¬
ginning of Cambrian time . 546

XLIV. 1 . Vertical section across northern central Wisconsin during the
deposition of the Upper Cambrian (Potsdam) sandstone.

(After Chamberlin, Geology of Wisconsin, vol. 1, 1883, PI. 5,
section) . 556

2. Section displayed to view on the east side of the gorge at the

upper narrows of the Baraboo River, showing the uncon¬
formity between the Potsdam sandstone and the subjacent
Huronian quartzite. (After Irving, Seventh Ami. Rep. U. S.
Geological Survey, p. 407, Fig. 80.) . 556

3. Section on Black River in the vicinity of Black River Falls,

Wisconsin, showing the Potsdam sandstone resting on an
eroded surface composed of granite and steeply inclined
layers of gneiss and ferruginous schists. Scale 2 miles to
the inch. (After Irving, Seventh Ann. Rep. U. S. Geolog¬
ical Survey, p. 403, Fig. 75.) . 556

ILLUSTRATIONS.

Page.

Pi.. XLIV. 4. Section from southeast to northwest in the St. Croix River
region of northwestern Wisconsin, through the Keweenaw
series and Potsdam sandstone. (After Irving, Seventh

Ann. Rep. U. S. Geological Survey, p. 413, Fig. 88) . 556

XLV. Hypothetical map of the North American Continent at the be¬
ginning of Lower Silurian (Ordovician) time . 566

XLVI. Electric Peak from Sepulchre Mountain . 580

XL VI I. Head of East Gulch of Electric Peak . . 582

XLVIII. Fig. 1. Diorito (coarse grain) . 596

Fig. 2. Diorite (medium grain) . 596

XLIX. Fig. 1. Granite (fine grain) . 598

Fig. 2. Quartz-mica-diorite-porphyrite . 598

L. Intergrowths of minerals in the diorite . 606

LI. Intergrowths of minerals in glassy rocks and quartz pheno-

crysts . 612

LII. Sepulchre Mountain from its northwest spur . 634

LI1I. Geological map of the region . 664

Fig. 1. Diagram showing the history of a talus . 233

2. Sections showing the two common varieties of glacial detritus . 238

3. Successive states of a district where volcanoes are for a time active.. 241

4. Map showing comparative development of stream beds in a district

when it is forested and when the wood is removed . 254

5. Diagram showing action of soil water in excavating caverns . 257

6. Diagram showing one of the conditions by which soil water may

penetrate deeply and emerge as a hot spring . 258

7. Effect of roots of trees on the formation of soil . 270

8. First effect of overturned trees on soil . 273

9. Final effect of overturned trees on soil . 274

10. Diagram showing process by which a stone may be buried by the

action of earthworms and other animals . 275

11. Effect of ant-hills on soils . 279

12. Section through the coarse alluvium formed beside a torrent bed _ 290

13. Section across a river valley showing terraces of alluvium . 291

14. Section across alluvial plain on one side of a large river . 292

15. Diagram showing the effect of a layer of rock yielding fertilizing ele¬

ments to the soil . 296

16. Diagram showing the direction and rate of motion of soil . 297

17. Diagram showing progress of fragments down a slope to a stream _ 298

18. Diagram showing relative state of soils in lower part of mountain

valley and in the “ cove” at its head . 299

19. Diagram showing successive variations in fertility in the soils of

central Kentucky during the downward movement of the rocks _ 302

20. Diagram showing the lateral migration of streams in their descent

through inclined rocks . 303

21. Section across ordinary lake in glacial drift . 314

22. Diagrammatic section through lake basin showing formation of infu¬

sorial earth . 316

23. Section from seashore to interior of district recently elevated above

the sea level . 317

24. Section showing the origin and structure of marine marshes . 318

25. Section through coal bed . 322

26. Section showing process of formation and closing of gullies on hill¬

sides . 332

27. Diagrams showing one of the ordinary conditions of a dangerous

water supply ...... . 343

XII

ILLUSTRATIONS.

Page.

Fig. 28. “Second bottom” phase of the Columbia formation, near Columbus,

Georgia . 390

29. Brown loam with silt layer at base ; Arsenal Cut, Baton Rouge, Lou¬

isiana . 395

30. Relation of brown loam to silty beds and Port Hudson clays; Port

Hickey, Louisiana . 396

31. Brown loam with silt bed and gravel beds near base; Bayou Sara,

Louisiana . 397

32. Loess resting on stratified sand, near Natchez, Mississippi . 398

33. Landslip contact between loess and stratified sand ; 1 mile south of

Natchez, Mississippi . . . 399

34. General section through inner portion of the coastal plain in the mid¬

dle Atlantic slope . . 426

35. General section through coastal plain in southern Atlantic slope . 427

36. General section through the coastal plain in eastern Gulf slope (Chat¬

tahoochee River) . 427

37. General section through the coastal plain in eastern Gulf slope (west¬

ern Alabama) . . 427

38. General section through the coastal plain in the Mississippi embay-

ment . 427

39. Later continental oscillations of middle Atlantic slope . 428

40. Continental oscillations of middle and southern Atlantic slopes . 428

41. Neozoic continental oscillations of eastern Gulf slope (Chattahoochee

River) . 429

42. Neozoic continental oscillations of eastern Gulf slope (western Ala¬

bama) . 429

43 Neozoic continental oscillation of Mississippi embayment . 429

44. Denudation of the Lafayette sands by modern erosion; near Laurel

Hill, Louisiana . 434

45. Typical “gulf” exposing the Columbia and Lafayette formations;

near Fort Adams, Mississippi . 435

46. Typical contact between Columbia and Lafayette formations; near

Fort Adams, Mississippi . 436

47. Typical “gut;” 3 miles east of Fort Adams, Mississippi . 437

48. Relations of Columbia, Lafayette, and Grand Gulf formations; near

Fort Adams, Mississippi . 438

49. Columbia and Lafayette formations as exposed in a typical “gulf;”

near Port Gibson, Mississippi . 442

50. Erosion forms of the Lafayette formation; 5 miles north of Port Gib¬

son, Mississippi . 443

51. Lafayette erosion forms; 5 miles south of Rocky Springs, Mississippi. 444

52. Lafayette erosion forms ; Rocky Springs, Mississippi . 445

53. Lafayette erosion forms ; Rocky Springs, Mississippi . 446

54. Relations of Columbia and Lafayette formations; near Jackson, Mis

sissippi . 448

55. Relations between Columbia and Lafayette formations ; near Durant,

Mississippi . 450

56. Structure of the Lafayette formation ; near Water Valley, Mississippi . 455

57. Pseudo-unconformity in the Lafayette formation; near Oxford, Mis¬

sissippi . . 456

58. Structure of the Lafayette formation ; at Oxford, Mississippi . 457

59. Structure of the Lafayette formation; near Waterford, Mississippi.. 458

60. Structure of the Lafayette formation ; near Holly Springs, Mississippi. 459

61. Structure of the Lafayette formation; near Lagrange, Tennessee _ 460

62. Forest bed between Columbia and Lafayette formations ; Lagrange,

Tennessee . 461

ILLUSTRATIONS. XIII

Page.

Fig. 63. Structure of Lafayette formation ; Lagrange, Tennessee . 462

64. Structure of Lafayette formation ; 1 mile west of Lagrange, Tennessee. 463

65. Structure of Lafayette formation ; Lagrange, Tennessee . 464

66. Structure of Lafayette formation ; near Hickory Valley, Tennessee. . 465

67. Section developed by artesian boring at Memphis, Tennessee . 466

68. Structure of Lafayette formation ; near Mayfield, Kentucky . 468

69. Structure of the Lafayette formation ; near Mayfield, Kentucky . 469

70. Contact between Lafayette and Eocene deposits; 3 miles northwest

of Malvern, Arkansas . 471

71. Graphic epitome of Lafayette history . 520

72. Graphic epitome of later geologic history of the coastal plain . 520

73. a, b, c, d, e. Diagrammatic sections to illustrate the deposition of sedi¬

ments on a seashore that is being gradually depressed in relation
to sea level, and a section of sediment so deposited when elevated
as part of a mountain range . 530

74. Section from St. Johns, Newfoundland, to Great Bell Island, Con¬

ception Bay, by Portugal Cove . 547

75. Section on Manuels Brook, Conception Bay, Newfoundland . 548

76. Section from Rigaud, Canada, to Chateaugay Four Corners, Franklin

County, New York . 549

77. Section showing Paleozoic sediments and configuration of Archcan

bottom of ocean in Wyoming, Utah, and Nevada . 552

78. Grand Canyon section, Arizona . 553

79. Variation of silica percentages . 627

80. Diagram showing molecular variation of the rocks at Electric Peak . 629

81. Diagram showing molecular variation of rocks at Sepulchre Moun¬

tain . 649

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL.

Department of the Interior,

U. S. Geological Survey,
Washington, D. C., July 2, 1891.

Sir: I have the honor herewith to transmit to you a report
of the operations of the Geological Survey for the fiscal year
ending June 30, 1891.

Permit me to express my sincere gratitude for the kind
encouragement you have given me in the multifarious duties
devolving upon me as a subordinate officer of the Department.

I am, with great respect, your obedient servant,

Hon. John W. Noble,

Secretary of the Interior.

12 GEOl. - 1

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE UNITED STATES

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

By J. W. Powell, Director.

PROGRESS OF TOPOGRAPHIC WORK.

During the year topographic work lias been carried on by
the Survey in twenty-seven States and Territories, and an area
of 44,100 square miles has been surveyed and mapped. Ot
this area 16,843 square miles were mapped upon a scale of
1:62,500, with contour intervals of 5, 10, or 20 feet, and the
remainder on a scale of 1:125,000, with contour intervals of 20,
50, or 100 feet. The distribution of the mapped area is shown
graphically on Plate i, in the pocket at the end of this volume,
and the details of the work are set forth in the accompanying
administrative reports by Messrs. Gannett and Thompson.

The present condition of the topographic survey is exhib¬
ited in the accompanying table.

Table shoicing the present condition of topographic surveys and the areas
surveyed in 1890- 91 , by States and Territories.

States.

Total.

area.

Area sur¬
veyed to
date.

Area sur¬
veyed in
1890-’91.

Scale.

Contour

interval.

Sq. miles.

Feet.

Alabama .

52. 250

14, 870

1 : 125000

50 and 10C

Ai i zona . . .

113,020
53, 850

41, 000

1 : 250000

200 and 250

Arkansas .

13,000

2, 500

1 : 125000

California .

158, 360

29,000

1,000

s 1 : 125000
l 1 : 250000

50, 100, 200

Colorado .

103, 925

32, 300

8, 700

( 1 : 62500

1 1 : 125000

)

25, 50, 100

Connecticut .

4, 990

2, 250

1 : 62500

District of Columbia

1 : 62500

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR

Table showing the present condition of topographic surveys and the areas
surveyed in 1890- 91, etc. — Continued.

States.

Total

area.

Area sur¬
veyed to
date.

Area sur¬
veyed in
1890-’91.

Sq. miles.

Florida .

58, 680

700

450

Georgia .

59, 475

14, 275

400

Idaho .

3, 800

1,900

Illinois .

56, 650

1, 725

1, 125

Iowa . ; .

56, 025

5, 375

900

Kansas .

82, 080

53, 200

9,000

Kentucky .

40, 400

11,800

2, 030

Louisiana .

48, 720

7,000

5,000

Maine .

33, 040

2, 457

1, 125

Maryland .

12, 210

5,' 930

2, 450

Massachusetts .

8, 315

231

Michigan .

58, 915

168

Missouri .

69, 415

26, 000

Montana .

146, 080

10, 800

400

Nevada .

110, 700

16, 800

2,800

New Hampshire ....

9, 305

1,000

New Jersey .

7,815

7, 815

New Mexico .

122, 580

26, 850

2, 850

New York .

49, 170

1, 095

450

North Carolina .

52, 250

10, 400

Oregon .

96, 030

11,000

Pennsylvania .

42, 215

4,737

1,800

Rhode Island .

1,250

South Carolina .

30, 570

4, 350

2,050

Tennessee .

42, 050

15, 095

2, 480

Texas .

265, 780

40, 250

8,000

Utah .

84, 970
9, 565

6, 000

Vermont .

560

Virginia .

42. 450

31, 410

1,860

AVest Virginia .

24, 780

20, 500

2, 150

Wisconsin .

56, 040

3, 840

1, 575

Wyoming, includ¬
ing Yellowstone
National Park ....

97, 890

4,000

Scale.

1 : 62500

1 : 125000

1 : 62500

1 : 125000

1 : 62500

) 1 : 62500 )

l 1 : 125000 £

1: 62500

( 1 : 62500 l

l 1 : 125000 J

i 1 : 125000 )

i 1 : 250000 S

s 1 : 125000 \
\ 1 : 250000 S

1 : 62500

5 1 : 125000 )

l 1 : 250000 \

1 : 62500

1 : 125000

1 : 250000

1 : 62500

1 : 125000

1 : 250000

1 : 62500

S 1 : 125000 l

\ 1 : 62500 )

1 : 125000

1 : 62500

1 : 125000

Contour

interval.

Feet.

50 and 100
50 and 100
5 and 10
20

20 and 50
100
5
20

20, 50, 100

20 and 50

100 and 200

100, 200, 250
20

10 and 20

100 and 200

100

200

50 and 100
100
50
250
20

20, 50, 100

100

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

ATLAS SHEETS.

The work of the last year completes 125 atlas sheets, of
which 73 are on a scale of 1 : 62,500, and the remainder on a
scale of 1 : 125,000. The whole number of atlas sheets com¬
pleted to the present date by survey and compilation is 613.
Of this number, 259 are on the scale of 1 : 62,500, 293 on a
scale of 1 : 125,000, and 61 on a scale of 1 : 250,000.

ORGANIZATION.

During most of the field season the organization of the to¬
pographic branch remained substantially the same as last year,
the work done under the Geological Survey proper being in
charge of Mr. Henry Gannett, while the topographic work
executed under the Irrigation Survey, as a distinct organiza¬
tion, was in charge of Prof. A. H. Thompson. But a provision
of the sundry civil act, passed in the latter days of August,
required certain changes in organization. By that act a por¬
tion of the work of the Irrigation Survey was discontinued,
and appropriation for topographic work' under the Geological
Survey \was divided equally between the country lying east
and that lying west of the one hundredth meridian. It seemed
advisable to make the organization conform to this division of
the appropriation, and accordingly the topographic branch of
the Survey was organized in two divisions, whose fields of work
were separated by the one hundredth meridian; the eastern
division in charge of Mr. Henry Gannett and the western
division in charge of Mr. A. H. Thompson. Certain transfers
of persons and fields of work were made at the same time.
These changes are fully set forth in the administrative reports
of Messrs Gannett and Thompson.

SURVEYS EAST OF THE ONE HUNDEDTH MERIDIAN.

Work was prosecuted in Maine by two parties and 5 atlas
sheets were completed.

The survey of Connecticut, commenced last year in coop¬
eration with the State authorities and in part at the expense
of the State, was finished.

Two sheets were surveyed in the valley of the Hudson in
New York and eight sheets in the anthracite coal region of
Pennsylvania.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

Ill the southern Appalachian region work was actively pros¬
ecuted by six topographic parties and one triangulation party.
The areas surveyed are: In Maryland, on the west shore of
Chesapeake Bay; in southern Virginia, on the Atlantic plain;
in central West Virginia; in eastern Kentucky; in the Cum¬
berland plateau of Tennessee; and the drainage basin of the
Savannah River in South Carolina and Georgia. In most of
these regions the demand for maps is great, owing to the
rapid development of mineral resources.

The work commenced in the iron region of the upper penin¬
sula of Michigan was completed, and a detailed map of this
important iron-producing region was finished.

In southern Wisconsin 7 atlas sheets were finished.

The work in Illinois, along the course of the Illinois River,
was prosecuted actively, and 7 atlas sheets were surveyed.

Work was prosecuted in Iowa until early in October, and 4
atlas sheets were completed.

In Kansas work was prosecuted by two topographic parties
and one triangulation party, and 7 atlas sheets, comprising
about 7,000 square miles, were surveyed.

Work was continued in the Ozark Hills of Arkansas, and 2
sheets and parts of a third sheet were finished.

In Texas work was actively prosecuted, finishing 6 sheets,
or about 6,000 square miles.

During the winter the survey of the alluvial region of the
lower Mississippi, commenced the season before, was contin¬
ued, and, partly from field-work and partly by compilation,
20 sheets were prepared.

During the winter also work was continued in the phos¬
phate region of Florida, and 1 sheet was completed, together
with most of a second sheet.

Work was likewise prosecuted in the Dismal Swamp of Vir¬
ginia and the country adjacent thereto, and 2 sheets were
completed.

SURVEYS WEST OF TIIE ONE HUNDREDTH MERIDIAN.

In California 2 atlas sheets were completed and 33 reservoir
sites surveyed and reported upon.

In Colorado 9 atlas sheets were completed and 46 reservoir
sites located, surveyed, and reported upon.

REPORT OP THE DIRECTOR.

In Idaho 2 atlas sheets were surveyed.

In Kansas work was completed on 2 atlas sheets.

In Montana 400 square miles lying1 in the Sun River drain¬
age basin were mapped and 28 reservoir sites were surveyed
and reported upon.

In Nevada work on 4 atlas sheets was completed and 2 res¬
ervoir sites were surveyed and reported upon.

In New Mexico 3 atlas sheets were completed and 39 reser¬
voir sites were surveyed and reported upon.

In North Dakota 734 miles of level lines were run for topo¬
graphic purposes and for determining the height, above the
Missouri River, of the divide between that stream and the
James River. A general reconnaissance of the country was
also made.

In Texas work was completed on 2 atlas sheets.

ENGRAVING.

The following tables show a summation of the number and
distribution of engraved atlas sheets and a description of the
individual sheets:

Table showing number , distribution , etc ., of the atlas sheets engraved to

June 30, 1891.

State.

Alabama.
Arizona .
Arkansas

! Wholly
within
State.

Partly

within

State.

Scale.

3 1 : 125000

1 : 250000
1 : 125000

California

( 1 : 125000
} 1 : 250000

Colorado .

Connecticut .

TJpIji wtiro.

District of Columbia.. . .
Georgia .

Idaho .

Illinois .

Iowa . .

Kansas .

s 1 : 62500
) 1 : 125000

1 : 62500

1 : 125000

1 : 62500

1 : 62500
1 : 125000

Contour

interval.

Approxi¬
mate area.

Feet.

50 and 100

Sq. miles.
14, 200

200 and 250

58, 000

10,000

| 50,100,200

30,000

| 50 and 100

11, 450

2, 475

50 and 100

11,800

50 and 100

2,000

650

4,050

20 and 50

43,000

8 REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

Table showing number, distribution, etc., of the atlas sheets engraved to

June 30, 1891 — Continued.

State.

Wholly

within

State.

Partly

within

State.

Scale.

Contour

interval.

•

Approxi¬
mate area.

Ken tn elr y .

1 : 125000.

Feet.

100

Sq. miles.

8, 000

Maine .

1 : 62500

1,000

Maryland .

( 1 : 125000
\ 1 : 62500

1 : 62500

\ 20, 50, 100

2, 000

Mfl .ssaclm setts .

8, 315

Missouri . __ .

< 1 : 125000
x 1 : 62500

1 : 250000

£ 20 and 50

26, 000

Mem f,fl, na

200

31, 500

Nevada . . . .

1 : 250000

200 and 250

24, 500

New Hampshire _r .

1 : 62500

1, 000

Now .Torsey . .

1 : 62500

10 and 20

7,815

Now Mexico _ _ . .

< 1 : 125000

X 1 : 250000

1 : 62500

| 50,100,200
20

19, 000

Now Y nr 1? .

1,000

North Carolina .

1 : 125000

100

7, 000

Ore arm . .

1 : 250000

200

3, 500

Pen n syl van i a .

1 : 62500

2, 000

"Rhode Island . .

1 : 62500

1, 250

Smith Parol inn _ .

1 : 125000

100

1,500

T onnessee . .

1 : 125000

100

12, 000

Texas .

1 : 125000

28, 000

Utali .

1 : 250000

250

65, 000

Vormnnt . . .

1 : 62500

450

Virginia. . . . . .

( 1 : 62500
x 1 : 125000

1 : 125000

| 20, 50, 100

100

23, 500

West Virginia .

14, 500

Wisconsin . .

1 : 62500

900

Wyoming . .

1 : 125000

100

3, 600

PROGRESS OF GEOLOGIC WORK.

Progress in geologic work has gone steadily forward along
two general lines : First, the mapping of the areal distribution
of formations; second, the study in field and office of various
problems in rock structure and history. This progress is
conditioned by two factors : First, the existence of topographic
maps upon which to delineate the areal distribution; and second,
the amount of money appropriated for the purpose.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

The area available for mapping areal distribution steadily
grows with the progress of topographic mapping.

The money appropriated for geologic work this year was 15
per cent more than for the previous year. As a result, some of
the existing sections were enlarged and new work was instituted

O o

in two directions. The mineral phosphates of Florida have re¬
cently assumed commercial importance, and as little is known
of their origin, extent, or geologic occurrence, systematic study
of them has been entered upon. It is hoped that this study
may lead to inferences of value in the exploitation of other
deposits of similar character. This new section of work has
been placed in charge of Mr. George H. Eldridge. A New
Jersey section of work has also been created during the year,
and placed in charge of Prof. Raphael Pumpellv. This is a joint
service in which the State and the General Government, by
their respective surveys, unite to obtain the best results with¬
out duplication of work, and at a minimum cost.

General charge of all the geologic work of the Survey has
continued under the direction of Mr. G. K. Gilbert, chief
geologist, whose own work as well as that of the whole geologic
branch of the Survey is fully set forth in the accompanying
administrative reports. The Director has thus been relieved
of the duty of preparing a detailed statement of the operations
of this branch of the Survey, which has afforded him time to
set forth more elaborately the operations of the Irrigation Sur¬
vey. The report on this latter subject will appear as a second
part of this report,

PROGRESS OF PALEONTOLOGIC WORK.

The work of this branch of the Survey has been carried for¬
ward on the principles set forth in the tenth and eleventh
annual reports of the Survey. Briefly stated they are : (1)
The identification and correlation of geologic formations by
the organic remains contained therein, for the purpose of aid¬
ing the geologists in delineating formations and making geo¬
logic maps. (2) The study, from a biologic point of view,
of the faunas and floras contained in the rocks, for the pur-

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

pose of obtaining- a critical knowledge of the genera and
species and of the evolution of life and its relations to envi¬
ronment during geologic time.

In the study of stratified rocks the interdependence of geol¬
ogy and paleontology is such that much of the paleontologist’s
time is given to a study of strata in the field and to the litera¬
ture of geology in order more fully to establish the strati¬
graphic succession and geographic distribution of life in the
various geologic formations. It is recognized that strati¬
graphic geology is the foundation of chronologic paleontology,
and that no definite record of the progress of life can be
obtained without a knowledge of the succession of faunas and
floras in the strata. When this knowledge is once obtained the
paleontologist can correlate the various isolated fossiliferous
formations the geologists meet with, by reference to a general
scheme of the succession of life that has previously been estab¬
lished. This general succession has been determined in its
broader outlines, but special studies are still necessary to
verify and increase our knowledge of it. The paleontologists
also aid the geologists in the field by making special studies
of the geologic sections, and determining the horizons of
various formations.

To correlate more thoroughly the work of the various divi¬
sions of the paleontologic branch, Mr. Charles D. Walcott was
instructed to examine and obtain data for a report upon the
collections of the Geological Survey in charge of paleontol¬
ogists not located in Washington. He found the collections
well cared for and, in the event of the death or disability of
the person in charge, each could be readily identified, packed,
and shipped to the Geological Survey at Washington. The
methods used in caring for the collections are set forth in his
administrative report.

Mr. Walcott has charge of the invertebrate paleontology of
the Paleozoic formations. He has been principally engaged
in completing the correlation essay on the Lower Paleozoic or
Cambrian rocks of North America. In addition to this, atten¬
tion was given to matters relating to the paleontologic branch
of the Survey and to the study of the Silurian section north-

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

west of Canyon City, Colorado, with relation to the strati-
graphic position of the oldest vertebrate fossil remains yet
discovered. By their associated invertebrate faunas the fish
remains were found to be of middle Lower Silurian age, and
much more ancient than any vertebrate life hitherto known.

Prof. H. S. Williams, who is attached to this division, com¬
pleted his correlation essay on the Devonian and Carbonifer¬
ous rocks, and conducted studies, both in field and office, on
the relations of the Upper Paleozoic rocks in the Mississippi
Valley, in Arkansas, and in Missouri.

The work of Prof. Alpheus Hyatt on the Lower Mesozoic
was materially advanced by his field studies on the Pacific
coast, in cooperation with the geologic division in charge of
Mr. J. S. Diller, by the revision and description of the Tri-
assic fossils from Idaho, and by the preparation of geologic
sections made by him in New Mexico in 1889. This work
has largely increased the data for the classification of the for¬
mations of the Jura-Trias period.

Dr. C. A. White, in charge of the Division of Upper Meso¬
zoic Paleontology, completed in February his correlation essay
on the Cretaceous formations of North America. The prepa¬
ration by him of a bibliography of North American inverte¬
brate paleontology, together with a catalogue of all the pub¬
lished species, is now so far. advanced that its publication next
year may be expected. On completing the correlation essay,
his attention was directed toward accumulating data for two
memoirs on the Upper Cretaceous formations.

Dr. W. B. Clark has completed and transmitted for publica¬
tion his correlation essay on the older Cenozoic or Eocene
rocks of the United States.

Dr. W. H. Dali, in charge of the work on Cenozoic inver¬
tebrates, has completed his essay on the correlation of the
newer Cenozoic or Neocene group. He has also continued his
studies of the collections of Cenozoic age and their related
later faunas that have been collected by the members of the
Survey or presented by private individuals. His special field
work was in northern California, in connection with Mr. J. S.
Diller, who was engaged in mapping the areal geology. He

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

also studied in the field several questions relating to Floridian
geology, especially in the southern portion of that peninsula.

The importance of field work was so great in the Division
of Vertebrate Paleontology, in charge of Prof. 0. C. Marsh,
that he personally visited the region under exploration, espe¬
cially the localities where the most interesting discoveries had
been made in the Laramie beds. Although it was planned
to devote the resources of the division mainly to laboratory
work, nevertheless a large amount of valuable material was
obtained in the field. This material will be of great value in
studies connected with the monographs now in preparation on
the vertebrates. Study of the material in the laboratory was
continued and work on the monograph on the Sauropoda so
far advanced that its early publication is anticipated. A large
series of typical vertebrate fossils lias been selected from the
collection stored at New Haven, and will soon be placed on
exhibition in the collections of the National Museum.

Work on the vertebrate fossils from the newer formations
of Florida was continued by Prof. Joseph Leidy, of Philadel¬
phia, Pennsylvania, and but for his sudden illness and death
it would soon have been completed.

The Division of Paleobotany, in charge of Prof. Lester F.
Ward, has advanced the bibliographic work on the subject
and assembled a vast amount of data, valuable for correlating
American formations by their contained plant remains. Field
work, for the purpose of obtaining collections of fossil plants
from various geologic groups, was vigorously prosecuted in the
Cretaceous series of Montana, in the Devonian of New York,
in the Cretaceous of Gray Head, Massachusetts, and in the Jura-
Trias of the Connecticut Valley. The special work in the
laboratory was the preparation of a paper on the plant-bearing
deposits of the Atlantic States. This, in connection with the
monograph now in preparation on the flora of the Laramie
group, the editing of the monograph by Prof. Lesquereux on
the Dakota group, and general routine work, occupied the time
of the entire force of the division throughout the year.

The work of the Division of Fossil Insects, in charge of
Prof. Samuel Id. Scudder, was almost wholly confined to the

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

office and laboratory. An important collection, gathered in
previous years, has been to a large extent worked over and
the material prepared for study. Also, three works were pub¬
lished, as follows: The Tertiary Insects of North America,
Bibliography of Fossil Insects, and An Alphabetical Index
to the Known Fossil Insects of the World. In addition to this,
progress was made in preparing a monograph on one of the
divisions of the Coleoptera.

Details of the work of the various paleontologic divisions,
including the progress of various special researches, journeys,
and collections made in the field; special reports on local col¬
lections made to field geologists, and the distribution of work
among assistants, are set forth at length in the administrative
reports of the chiefs of paleontologic divisions.

PROGRESS IN ACCESSORY WORK.

CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS.

This division has continued under the efficient direction of
Prof. F. W. Clarke. The scientific corps, consisting of seven
chemists and two physicists, remained unchanged. The ener¬
gies of the division were largely spent in the ordinary routine
of chemical work. Two hundred and sixty-two complete quan¬
titative analyses were made, mostly of rocks and minerals col¬
lected by the geologists. A much larger number of specimens
received from various sources were reported upon qualitatively.
The chemical constitution of the micas, chlorites, and vermic-
ulites has been studied jointly by Prof. Clarke and Dr. Schnei¬
der, and a bulletin giving results prepared.

The occurrence of nitrogen in a mineral found chiefly in
Archean granite was determined last year by Dr. W. F. Hille-
brand. This year he has extended his investigations and con¬
firmed his earlier conclusions. Dr. Thomas M. Chatard has
entered upon a special study of the mineral phosphates, begin¬
ning with those in Florida, where he spent a month in making
collections. Near the close of the year Dr. William Hallock
visited Wheeling, West Virginia, and obtained a series of valu¬
able measures of earth temperatures, a dry well 4,500 feet

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

deep affording- an exceptional opportunity for such researches.
Further details will be found in the report of Prof. Clarke.

STATISTICS OF MINERAL PRODUCTS.

With the present fiscal year began the regular decennial
census of the United States. It was found advantageous, as
set forth in the last annual report, to combine the work of the
Census relating to mineral industries with that of the division
of Mining Statistics of the Geological Survey. This joint
work has been successfully carried on under the direction of
Dr. David T. Day. The work of the division was during the
year enlarged to several times its ordinary dimensions with a
correspondingly increased volume of results. The expense
was borne jointly by the Geological Survey and the Census
The following is a tabulated statement of the mineral prod¬
ucts of the United States for the calendar year 1890:

Metallic products of the United States in 1890.

Quantity.

Value.

Pig iron, spot value .

_ ^long tons..

9, 202, 703

$151, 200, 410

Silver, coining value .

. . troy ounces. .

54, 500, 000

70, 464, 645

Copper, value at New York City .

. pounds..

265, 115, 133

30, 848, 797

Gold, coining value .

1, 588, 880

32, 845, 000

Lead, value at New York City .

. . . short tons . .

161, 754

14, 266, 703

Zinc, value at New York City .

. do _

63, 683

6, 266, 407

Quicksilver, value at San Francisco. ..

. flasks. .

22, 926

1, 108, 090

Nickel, value at Philadelphia .

. pounds' . .

323, 488

194, 093

Aluminum, value at Philadelphia .

. do2 _

72, 543

Antimony, value at San Francisco ....

. . . short tons . .

30, 000

Platinum, value (crude) at New York .

..troy ounces..

600

2,500

Total _ _ _ _

307, 299, 188

yon-metallic mineral products of the United States in 1890 (spot values).

Bituminous coal .

106, 921, 083

$109, 431, 221

Pennsylvania anthracite .

Building stone .

. do _

46, 468, 641

61, 445, 683
54, 000, 000
25, 000, 000

Lime .

1 Including nickel from Canadian matte.
s Including aluminum alloys.

3 Including brown coal and lignite and anthracite mined elsewhere than in Pennsylvania.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

Non-metalUc mineral products of the United States , etc. — Continued.

Quantity.

Value.

Natural gas. . . . .

Petroleum . barrels

Cement . do..

Salt . do . .

Limestone for iron flux . long tons

Phosphate rock . do..

Mineral watets . gallons sold

Zinc white . short tons

Gypsum . do . .

Potters’ clay . long tons

Borax . pounds

Mineral paints . long tons

Grindstones .

Fibrous talc . short tons

Asplialtum . do..

Manganese ore . long tons

Soapstone . short tons

Flint . long tons

Pyrites . do . .

Precious stones, gold-quartz, jewelry, etc .

Marls . short tons

Crude barytes . long tons

Bromine . pounds

Corundum . short tons

Mica . pounds

Feldspar . long tons

Graphite, crude . pounds

Fluorspar . short tons

Slate ground as pigment . long tons

Sulphur . short tons

Ozokerite, refined . pounds

Chrome iron ore . long tons

Novaculite . pounds

Millstones .

Cobalt oxide . pounds

Infusorial earth . short tons

Rutile . pounds

47, 000, 000
8, 000, 000
8, 683, 943
7, 000, 000
575, 000
14, 000, 000

275, 000
300,000
8, 000, 000
35,000

34, 809
60,000
25,000
15,000
12, 000
87, 856

125, 000
20, 000
100, 000
2,000
60, 000
7,000

8, 250
2,000
260

100, 000
11,000
2, 500, 000

10,000
5, 000 i
1,000

$12, 000, 000
30, 000, 000
6, 000, 000
4, 707, 869
4, 000,000
2, 800, 000
2, 000, 000
1, 600, 000
800,000
650, 000
500,000
475,000
450,000
323, 746
200,000
250,000
250,000
50,000
235, 611
200,000
50,000
110, 000
30,000
100,000
75,000
40,000
75,000
55, 328
20,000
7,800
5,000
50,000
35,000
30,000
25,000
25,000
3,000

Total

318, 105, 258

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

Resume of the values of the metallic and non-metallic mineral substances
produced in the United States in 1890.

Metals . $307,299,188

Mineral substances named in the foregoing table . 318, 105, 258

Estimated value of mineral products unspecified . 10, 000, 000

Grand total . 635, 404, 446

WORK IN THE DIVISION OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

This division lias remained in charge of Mr. De Lancey W.
Gill, who has maintained a high degree of efficiency. The
average number of persons employed was 8 and the number
of drawings produced 1,520. These have been prepared for
annual reports, bulletins, and monographs. Interesting details
respecting this division will be found in Mr. Gill’s report.

ENGRAVING AND PRINTING.

This division was created in February, 1890. Before that
time the engraving and printing of maps was done by con¬
tract. Since that date a part has been done by contract and
an increasing part by this division, which has steadily grown
both in size and efficiency. It now numbers 12 persons and
has the necessary machinery and appliances for rapid and
economic map-engraving and printing. The chief engraver,
Mr. S. J. Kiibel, whose report is printed in this volume, has
shown a comprehensive knowledge of his art, good executive
ability, and zeal. As a result, the division is well organized
and efficient. As now constituted it can economically and
skillfully make all the necessary corrections and revisions of
the engraved plates, can do all the experimental engraving
work, engrave some new sheets, and do all the map printing.
This map printing will steadily increase as the number of
plates and the demand for maps increase. The Survey now
has the engraved copper plates of 473 sheets of the topographic
atlas of the United States. The total number of maps printed
during the year was 27,000.

The engraving of maps, both by contract and by the Division
of Engraving and Printing, has gone forward rapidly through¬
out the year. At the date of my last report 344 sheets had

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

been engraved. During the fiscal year just ended 129 sheets
were engraved, making the total number to date 473. Of
these, 28 were engraved in the office and 101 by contract.

On June 30, 1890, contracts for engraving sheets of the
general atlas of the United States were pending as follows:

Sinclair & Co., Philadelphia, 100 sheets at . : . $3. 40

H. C. Evans & Co., Washington, 30 sheets at . 2. 30

Bien & Co., New York, 48 sheets at . ^ . 2. 76

Bien & Co., New York, 20 sheets at . 2. 76

Bien & Co., New York, 9-sheet map of U. S . 48. 50

Excepting the second contract with Bien & Co., all the fore¬
going are completed.

During the year the following contracts for engraving 140
atlas sheets at an average cost of $282 have been awarded:

Evans & Bartle, Washington, 24 sheets at $285 . $6, 840

Evans & Bartle, Washington, 38 sheets at $250 . . 9, 500

Evans & Bartle, Washington, 23 sheets at $300 . 6, 900

Bien & Co., New York, 25 sheets at $325 . 8, 125

Harris & Sons, Baltimore, 30 sheets at $270 . 8, 100

Harris & Sons., Baltimore, map of Connecticut . 3, 485

Total . . . 42,950

PUBLICATIONS.

During the year there was excellent progress in making
public the results obtained by the Survey. This branch of
work had fallen in arrears, but is now fully up to date. For
this the Survey is greatly indebted to the efficient cooperation
of the Public Printer, Hon. F. W. Palmer. Papers aggregating
nearly 11,000 pages were published during the year. The
details are set forth in the accompanying report of Mr. W. A.
Croffut.

WORK OF THE LIBRARY.

The library has remained in charge of Mr. C. C. Darwin,
and its operations are described in detail in his administrative
report. The accessions during the year amount to 2,120
books, 3,260 pamphlets, and 2,337 maps, and these were ac¬
quired in part by purchase and in part by exchange. The
library now consists of 29,635 books, 37,957 pamphlets, and
22,337 maps. The extent to which the library is used may be
12 oeol - 2

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

judged by the fact that not less than 12,720 books and
pamphlets were drawn out for use during the year. The sale
and exchange of the Survey’s publications, as well as the
transmission of documents published for gratuitous distribu¬
tion and the extensive correspondence connected therewith,
have been carried on in the library. In all, 8,116 publications
have been sent out in exchange, 34,689 distributed gratuitously,
and 4, 1 87 sold. The total number of parcels handled is 53,07 8.

DISBURSEMENTS.

The accounts of the Survey have been, as ever since its
organization, in the hands of Mr. John I). McChesney, chief
disbursing clerk, who has prepared the following statement:

FINANCIAL STATEMENT.

Amounts appropriated for and expended by the United States Geological Survey for the

fiscal year ending June 30, 1891.

General
! expenses.

Office

salaries.

Geological

maps.

Total ap¬
propriation.

Appropriation fiscal year ending June 30, 1891, acts
approved July 11, 1890, and August 30, 1890 .

Amounts expended, classified as follows :

A. Sendees .

$613, 900. 00

$35, 540. 00

$70, 000. 00

$719, 440. 00

400, 751. 96
40, 270. 38
4, 527. 47
32, 536. 59
50, 980. 93
8, 030. 09

4, 255. 71
3, 125. 69
2, 997. 21

5, 221. 10
1,811.62

143. 00

3, 440. 51

754. 25

2, 319. 54

955. 33

29. 70

34, 721. 00

B. Traveling expenses .

D. Field subsistence .

E. Field supplies and expenses .

F. Field material .

G. Instruments .

H. Laboratory material .

I. Photographic material .

M. Illustrations for report .

N. Office rents .

O. Office furniture .

P. Olfice supplies and repairs .

Q. Storage .

R. Correspondence .

19, 643. 75

T, Bonded railroad accounts :

Freight . $388.05

Transportation of assistants . 1,711.45

2, 099. 50

Total expenditures .

Balance unexpended J une 30, 1891 .

Probable amount required to meet outstanding
liabilities, including contracts for engrav-

564, 250. 58

34,721.00 19,643.75

618, 615. 33

49, 649. 42

819. 00

50, 356. 25

100, 824. 67

100, 005. 67

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.

In Mr. McChesney’s administrative report will be found a
detailed statement of the disbursements of which the above
is a concise summary -

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.

For the successful prosecution of its work the Survey is
greatly indebted to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institu¬
tion, the Superintendent of the Coast and Geodetic Survey,
and the Chief Signal Officer, for their hearty cooperation.
The work of the Geological Survey is in many ways related
to that under the supervision of these officers, and through their
kindness important assistance has been rendered to the Sur¬
vey from day to day throughout the year.

The laborious duties connected with the administration of a
large bureau can not be successfully performed without intel¬
ligent, faithful, and zealous cooperation on the part of various
assistants. On no one officer is the Director compelled to rely
to a greater and more varied extent than upon his chief clerk.
For a period of some twenty years it has been the Director’s
good fortune to have the efficient, zealous, and faithful coop¬
eration and support of Mr. James C. Pilling. From the pres¬
ent Director’s appointment down to April 30, 1891, the office
of chief clerk in the Geological Survey has been filled by Mr
Pilling. In addition to his multifarious duties in this position
Mr. Pilling has been engaged in scientific work, collecting,
arranging, and publishing material relating to the Indian lan¬
guages of North America; but failing health has made it nec¬
essary for him to relinquish a portion of his work, and he has
determined to devote himself exclusively to the scientific part.
On the 1st of May he was succeeded in the office of chief clerk
by Col. II. C. Rizer. As a member of the Bureau of Ethnol¬
ogy Mr. Pilling will continue to prosecute his bibliographic
and linguistic researches, and in the interest of science and of
scientific workers it is hoped that he may be spared yet many
years to continue his useful work.

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS

CHIEFS OF DIVISIONS

AND

HEADS OF INDEPENDENT PARTIES

ACCOMPANYING THE ANNUAL REPORT OF THE

DIRECTOR OF THE U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

FOR THE

FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1891.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS.

REPORT OF MR. HENRY GANNETT

U. S. Geological Survey,

Eastern Division of Topography,

Washington , 7). C ., July 1 , 1891.

Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report upon the opera¬
tions of the Eastern Division of Topography during the last year:

In accordance with the precedent set by my last annual report I in¬
clude in this report the work of this division executed during May and
June of the preceding fiscal year, and omit from consideration its oper¬
ations during May and June, 1891, in order to avoid a division of the
field season.

During the year the work of this division lias been carried on in
twenty States, namely: Maine, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania,
Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky,
Tennessee, Florida, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Ar¬
kansas, Louisiana, and Texas.

The area surveyed is 44,100 square miles. Of this area 16,843 square
miles were surveyed upon a scale of 1 : 62,500, with contour intervals of
5, 10, or 20 feet, and 27,257 square miles upon the scale of 1 : 125,000,
with contour intervals of 20, 50, or 100 feet. The area surveyed upon
the larger scale is 50 per cent greater than that of the preceding year,
while that upon the smaller scale is less in nearly the same proportion,
showing a decided advance in the direction of enlarging the scale.

The number of atlas sheets completed by the season’s work was 101,
of which 73 were upon the scale of 1 : 62,500, and but 28 upon the scale
of 1 : 125,000.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

The area surveyed by this division is distributed as shown in the fol¬
lowing- table and upon the map which constitutes Plate i:

State.

Maine .

Connecticut - . .

New York .

Pennsylvania. .

Maryland .

Virginia .

West Virginia .

Georgia .

South Carolina

Tennessee .

Kentucky -

Florida .

Michigan .

Wisconsin _

Illinois .

Iowa . .

Kansas . .

Arkansas .

Texas .

Louisiana .

Scale of
field work.

Scale of
publication.

Contour

interval.

Area

surveyed.

1 : 45, 000

1 : 62500

Feet.

Sq. miles.

1, 125

1 : 45, 000

...do .

2, 250

1 : 45, 000

... do .

450

1 : 45, 000

. - .do .

1,800

1 : 63, 360

... do .

2, 450

1 : 63, 360

1 : 125000

2, 197

1 : 63, 360

...do .

100

2, 150

1 : 63, 360

...do .

400

1 : 63, 360

...do .

2, 050

1 : 03, 360

. . do .

100

2, 480

1 : 63, 360

. . .do .

100

2, 030

1 : 63, 300

1 : 62500

450

1 : 31, 680

... do .

168

1 : 31, 680

: .do .

1,575

1 : 31, 680

...do .

1, 125

1 : 31, 680

. . .do .

900

1 : 63, 360

1 : 125000

7, 000

1 : 63, 360

.. -do .

2, 500

1 : 63, 360

... do .

20 and 50

6, 000

1 : 63, 360

1 : 62500

5, 000

ORGANIZATION.

During the early part of the season the organization of the Topographic
branch was substantially the same as during the year preceding. It
comprised four sections, named, respectively, Northeastern, South¬
eastern, Northern, Central, and Southern Central.

The Northeastern Section included all work done in the States north
of the Mason and Dixon line and east of Ohio ; the Southeastern Sec¬
tion, all work done south of the Mason and Dixon line and ,tbe Ohio
River and east of the Mississippi and the eastern boundary of Louisiana;
the Northern Central Section, all work done in the States of the Mis¬
sissippi Y alley north of the southern boundary of Kansas and east of
the one hundredth meridian; the Southern Central Section, all work
done in the States of Arkansas, Texas, and Louisiana.

This form of organization was maintained until the 1st of October.
Shortly before that date the sundry civil bill was passed by Congress.
Among its provisions affecting the Geological Survey was one providing
that out of the total appropriation for topographic work ($325,000) to
be executed under the Geological Survey, one-half, or $102,500, should
be expended for surveys east and one-lialf for surveys west of the one
hundredth meridian. This was a considerable reduction from the amount
theretofore appropriated, and it required an immediate reduction of
force and change of plans.

Accordingly, as will be noted hereafter in greater detail, the work in
Texas and part of that in Kansas was moved west of the one hundredth

GANNETT.]

THIS HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

meridian, and that in Iowa was transferred to western North Dakota.
These changes involved the transfer of a number of men from the East¬
ern to the Western Division of Topography, and left in the Southern
Central Section only the Arkansas work.

Under these circumstances it seemed advisable to consolidate the
Northern Central and Southern Central Sections into one, under the
name of the Central Section, and this was accordingly done.

During the field season an average of 125 men were in the employ of
this division, of whom DO were topographers, assistant topographers,
draftsmen, mechanicians, and field assistants; the remainder consisting of
cooks, drivers, and laborers. During the winter there were employed
in the office an average of 75 men.

NORTHEASTERN SECTION.

During the early part of the season this section remained in charge
of Mr. Marcus Baker. On October 1, Mr. Baker was made General
Assistant of the Director, and Mr. H. M. Wilson was placed in charge of
this division. It has surveyed 5,025 square miles, completing 25 atlas
sheets, all on a publication scale of 1 : 02,500 and with a contour inter¬
val of 20 feet. The field of work was in southwestern Maine, eastern
Connecticut, southeastern New York, and the anthracite coal region in
northeastern Pennsylvania.

The parties of this section took the field during the months of May
and June. Work in Maine was resumed in May by Mr. W. II. Lovell,
with three assistants. His field of work included the lower valley of
the Kennebec and the coast of Casco Bay. Work was prosecuted ac¬
tively throughout the season and was closed late in November, five
atlas sheets, comprising 1,125 square miles, having been completed.

The work in Connecticut was continued at the joint expense of the U.
S. Geological Survey and the State of Connecticut, Mr. J. II. Jennings
being in charge of the work. Four topographic parties were sent to the
field in May, in charge respectively of Messrs. Jennings, Gulliver, At¬
kinson, and Clark, each with one or more assistants. A fifth party,
under Mr. G. L. Johnson, was assigned the duty of revising the three
sheets partially surveyed during the preceding season by E. W. F.
Natter.

Early in the season Mr. Gulliver received a sunstroke, from which he
recovered only partially, and the portion of the work assigned to him
suffered greatly in consequence. Early in November Mr. G. PI. Hyde,
who had spent the early part of the season in the iron region of Michi¬
gan, was assigned to work in this area, but was unable to complete it.
With this exception the work continued through the season with excel¬
lent results, and when the parties left the field late in November or
early in December the entire State of Connecticut was completed, with
the exception of one sheet (the Norwich sheet) in the southeastern part,
which was one of the two assigned to Mr. Gulliver’s party. During last

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

spring this sheet was completed, and T am ahle to report that the survey
of Connecticut is finished.

The work in New York was placed in charge of Mr. Frank Sutton,
with Mr. Robert Muldrow as an assistant. This party commenced work
the first of June and left the field late in November. The field of work
lay in the lower valley of the Hudson. The Tarrytown sheet was com¬
pleted, and the West Point sheet also, with the exception of a narrow
strip on the western bank of the Hudson River.

The work in Pennsylvania was placed in charge of R. D. Cummin,
and was carried on by four topographic parties, under Messrs. Cummin,
Kramer, Lambert, and Smith. These parties took the field in May and
completed their work in the latter part of November or early in Decem¬
ber, and surveyed during the season eight atlas sheets, all lying within
the anthracite coal region in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania.

SOUTHEASTERN SECTION.

This section remained in charge of Mr. Gilbert Thompson. During
the season an area of 14,137 square miles was surveyed, and twenty-five
atlas sheets completed, thirteen of which are on a scale of 1 : 125,000,
and twelve on a scale of 1 : 62,500. Work has been prosecuted in Mary¬
land, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, South Carolina,
Georgia, and Florida. In addition to the new work in these areas, con¬
siderable revision has been made, especially in the valley of East Ten¬
nessee.

A party under Mr. C. M. Yeates was occupied during the season in
extending the triangulation in eastern Kentucky for the control of the
topographic work in that region. He took the field with a small party
in June. His field of work was a most difficult one, consisting of the
broken country in the lower slopes of the Cumberland Plateau, and he
experienced great difficulty in planning and executing the required tri¬
angulation. He finally succeeded in carrying it through, and connected
with the astronomical station at Richmond, Kentucky, previously estab¬
lished by the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey. The discrepancy found
in this connection was in latitude 2.3" and longitude 0.5". Assuming
that the astronomical position of Richmond is correct — i. e., that there
is no station error — this discrepancy may be regarded as representing
the accumulation of error in 225 miles of triangulation over what is
probably the most difficult section of country in the United States, and
the result cannot but be regarded as very satisfactory.

The party operating in Maryland was put in charge of Mr. A. E.
Murlin, topographer, and the area intrusted to him to survey lies upon
the western shore of Chesapeake Bay, extending from the mouth of the
Potomac northward to the head of the bay and westward to the Mount
Vernon and Frederick sheets. It included the Baltimore and East
Washington sheets, already surveyed. This area was to be surveyed for
publication upon a scale of 1 : 62,500, with contour intervals of 20 feet.

OAN'NETT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

Mr. Murlin, with two assistants, took the hold earlyin June and pros¬
ecuted the work actively until the middle of .December, when he had
completed the area assigned him. ' The output of the party was 2,450
square miles, completing twelve atlas sheets.

The Virginia party was placed in charge of Mr. Chas. E. Cooke,
who had two assistants. To him was intrusted the work of completing
the Appomattox sheet and the entire survey of the Lynchburg sheet.
The party took the held about the middle of June, and worked industri¬
ously throughout the season, but was nevertheless forced to remain in
the held until the 1st. of January to complete the area assigned it. This
area, which finishes two atlas sheets, includes 1,860 square miles.

The West Virginia party remained, as heretofore, under Mr. L. C.
Fletcher, to whom, with three assistants was assigned the work of
completing the Charleston and Huntington atlas sheets in the western
part of the State, a region consisting of the lower slopes of the Cumber¬
land plateau, which are extremely broken and covered with forests.

Mr. Fletcher began work about the middle of June and prosecuted it
with his usual energy and good judgment, completing the area assigned
him, and disbanding November 1. The area surveyed during the season
was 2,150 square miles, completing the two atlas sheets above mentioned.

The Kentucky party remained, as heretofore, in charge of Mr. E. C.
Barnard, to whom, with three assistants, was intrusted the work of
surveying the Beattyville and Richmond atlas sheets, and as much of
the Harrodsburg sheet as possible. These sheets include the lower
slopes of the Cumberland plateau, which presented difficulties similar
to those encountered by Mr. Fletcher in West Virginia and a portion of
the bluegrass country.

This party took the field J une 10, and worked steadily till the latter
part of November, when the Beattyville and Richmond sheets were com¬
pleted, together with half of the Harrodsburg sheet, the total area sur¬
veyed being 2,030 square miles.

Mr. Merrill Hackett has remained in charge of the party engaged in
surveying the drainage basin of the Savannah River, in South Carolina.
This party, consisting of Mr. Hackett and two assistants, took the field
in the latter part of June, charged with the completion of the Abbeville
sheet and the survey of the Elberton and McCormick sheets, lying mainly
in South Carolina, north of Augusta, Georgia. This region consists of
a rolling country, with little relief.

Work was prosecuted till the middle of December, when the above-
named sheets were completed. The area surveyed by this party was
2,450 square miles, completing three atlas sheets. Besides executing
the topographic surveys, Mr. Hackett’s party were obliged to control
their work by means of primary traverse lines.

The work done in Tennessee during the last season was located in
the southeastern part of the State, along its southern boundary, and
extending westward from the Sequatchie Valley. Mr. Louis Nell was

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

placed in charge of the party, and at the opening of the season was
assigned three assistants, one of whom it was found necessary to with¬
draw for special work shortly after the commencement of the season.

This party took the field early in July, and completed work and dis¬
banded on November 10, having surveyed 2,480 square miles, complet¬
ing the Sewanee and Pikeville sheets and about half of the McMinnville
sheet. Besides executing the topographic survey of this area, they ran
111 miles of primary traverse for its control.

In addition to the new work above described, considerable revision
was carried on. Mr. Longstreet was engaged throughout the season in
revising the Maynardville, Morristown, and Mount Guyot sheets, and
Mr. Chas. G. Van Hook was detached in July from Mr. Nell’s party, and
was engaged during the remainder of the season in the resurvey of the
Knoxville atlas sheet.

During the winter, work was actively prosecuted in the phosphate
regions of Florida. Two parties were organized, one under Mr. C. M.
Yeates for running primary traverse lines and establishing bench-marks,
and one under Mr. Hersey Munroe for the mapping of topographic
details.

Mr. Yeates’s party took the field about the beginning of the calendar
year, and ran a line from Cedar Keys, on the west coast, to Gainesville,
thence southward to Ocala, following the railroad, and thence by com¬
mon road westward to the coast at Homosassa. His traverse lines were
accompanied by a level line for the purpose of establishing bench-marks
for the topographers.

Mr. Munroe commenced work upon the Dunnellon sheet west of Ocala
early in December, with four assistants. Work was prosecuted by this
party until the 1st of May, resulting in the completion of the Dunnellon
sheet and the survey of about three-fourths of the Ocala sheet, the scale
of work being suitable for publication upon a scale of 1 : 62,500 with a
contour interval of 10 feet.

During the winter and spring, field work has been prosecuted in the
Dismal Swamp and the country adjacent on the north and east by Mr.
W. It. Atkinson, in the area commenced three years previous. Work
was pushed from the 1st of January until the end of May, and resulted
in the survey of 337 square miles, completing the Norfolk and Virginia
Beach sheets, the scale of publication being 1:125,000, and the contour
interval 5 feet.

NORTHERN CENTRAL SECTION.

This section has remained in charge of Mr. J. II. Itenshawe. Work
has been prosecuted in the iron region upon the upper peninsula of
Michigan, in southern Wisconsin, in Illinois, and in Kansas, and during
the winter in southern Louisiana. The area surveyed was 15,768 square
miles, completing 43 atlas sheets, 36 of which are upon the scale of
1 : 62,500 and 7 upon the scale of 1 : 125,000.

GANNETT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

The topographic survey of the Marquette iron region upon the upper
peninsula of Michigan, which was commenced during the preceding year,
was completed and the survey of the Gogebic region carried out. This
work was done by Mr. G. E. Hyde and one assistant, who commenced
work in May and completed both areas in October.

As the work in these regions has been confined closely to the iron
region, without any reference to the completion of atlas sheets, the area
surveyed is irregular in form, and no sheets have been finished. The
entire area surveyed by Mr. Hyde in this region was 1(>8 square miles.

The work in Wisconsin, as heretofore, was in charge of Mr. Van If.
Manning, who with two assistants prosecuted the survey from May
until November. Seven sheets were surveyed, comprising approximately
1,575 square miles, lying in the southeastern part of the State.

The work in Illinois, as during the preceding season, was in charge of
Mr. 1). C. Harrison, with one assistant. They commenced work in May,
and prosecuted it actively until the latter part of November, completing
two sheets, which had been partially surveyed during the preceding sea¬
son, and surveying entirely five others, lying along the course of the
Illinois River southwest of Chicago. The entire area surveyed by Mr.
Harrison is estimated at 1,125 square miles.

As heretofore, the work in Iowa was carried on by Mr. W. J. Peters.
Mr. Peters, with one assistant, commenced work early in May and
prosecuted it admirably and effectively until the first of October, when,
owing to the allotment of the appropriation by Congress, and the con¬
sequent reduction in the amount available for eastern work, it became
necessary to transfer him with his assistant to the Western Division of
topography. Up to that time Mr. Peters had surveyed four sheets in
eastern Iowa, having an area of 900 square miles.

The work in Kansas was carried on under a form of organization
similar to that of the season before. The work was in general charge
of Mr. H. L. Baldwin, who personally conducted the triangulation for
its control. There were two topographic parties in charge respectively
of R. M. Towson and W. II. Herron. To Mr. Baldwin fell the work of
extending the northern belt of triangulation from its former termination
in longitude 97 to the one hundredth meridian, and the connection of his
triangulation stations with section corners of the General Land Office.

To Mr. Herron, with two assistants, was assigned the survey of the
three sheets lying along the southern boundary of the State, and limited
on the west by the one-liundredth meridian, while to Mr. Towson was
assigned the survey of five sheets in the northern portion of the State.
These parties took the field early in May. Mr. Towson’s party continued
through the season in the field allotted to it, and completed the five re¬
quired sheets. Mr. Herron had an extremely difficult field for survey,
consisting of a broken canyon country with few settlements and roads,
and his progress was therefore necessarily slow. The 1st of October
found his party with two sheets completed and level lines run over the

ADMINISTRATIVE RETORTS BY

third sheet, but no topography sketched upon it. At that date it be¬
came necessary to transfer this party to the Western Division.

The triangulation party under Mr. Baldwin had practically completed
on October 1 the belt of triangulation which it was called upon to exe¬
cute, and at that date this party was also transferred to the Western
Division.

The area surveyed by the Kansas party was 7,000 square miles, com¬
pleting seven atlas sheets, all surveyed for publication upon a scale of
1 : 125,000, with a contour interval of 20 feet.

SOUTHERN CENTRAL SECTIONS.

This section was in charge of Mr. B. U. Goode until October 1. AVork
was prosecuted in Arkansas and Texas. The area surveyed was 8,500
square miles, completing eight atlas sheets, all upon a scale of 1 : 125,000.

The organization of the Arkansas parties remained as during the pre¬
ceding year, and consisted of a triangulation party under Mr. G. T.
Hawkins, and a topographic party under Mr. II. B. Blair. The triangu¬
lation party took the field on the 1st of May, and was engaged through¬
out the season in working northward and westward along the northern
border of the State and running primary traverse lines in southwestern
Missouri looking toward the survey of the three sheets in the southwest¬
ern corner of that State. He left the field toward the end of November.

The topographic party, consisting of H. B. Blair with three assistants,
commenced work about the 1st of July, and continued in the field until
the latter part of December. Two sheets were surveyed completely in
the northern part of the State, while the third, the Little Bock sheet,
was nearly completed.

The organization in Texas was increased over that of last season by
the addition of a party under Mr. A. E. Wilson for executing primary
leveling and furnishing bench marks to the topographers. Besides this
leveling party there was, as before, one party for carrying on triangu¬
lation and two parties for mapping topographic details. The former was
in charge of Mr. C. F. Urquhart, the latter in charge of Messrs. H. S.

Wallace and B. O. Gordon.

These parties left for the field in the latter part of April and com¬
menced work in the early part of May. They surveyed, first, the two
sheets lying between the meridians of 97° and 97° 30' and the parallels
of 31° and 32°; then moving their parties westward, they surveyed four
sheets lying between the meridians of 99° 30' and 100° and the paral¬
lels of' 31° and 33°. The triangulation and leveling parties all this time
kept in advance of the topographic parties and furnished them positions
and elevations for their use. The area last mentioned was completed
on or about October 1, when all these parties were transferred to the
western section and their field work moved west of the one hundredth
meridian. At this date what was left the Southern Central Division

GANNETT.]

THIC HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

was consolidated with the Northern Central Division, and subsequent
work belongs to the latter organization.

During the winter work was actively prosecuted in southern Louisi¬
ana. This was placed in charge of Mr. II. L. Baldwin, and to him were
assigned eight assistants. They left for the field early in January, and
were organized into four parties of two men each for economic prosecu¬
tion of the work. Provision was made for housing the parties upon Hat-
boats, as it appeared to be impracticable to .maintain them a t houses,
as was the practice the winter before.

Work was continued until the middle of April. The area surveyed
lay south of the territory surveyed last season, and included the area
between the meridians of 89° 45' and 91° and from the parallel of 29°
45' southward to the coast. Besides this, the unfinished portions of
two sheets of the previous season’s area were completed. In this region
great assistance was afforded by the work of the U. S. Coast and Geo¬
detic Survey, which has completed or nearly completed the coast line
with the topography inland for some distance up the bayous and rivers.

From tins season’s work twenty atlas sheets will be finished, embrac¬
ing an area of about 5,000 square miles, all on a scale of 1 : 02,500, and
with a contour interval of 5 feet.

ASTRONOMIC AND COMPUTING SECTION.

Upon the resignation of Mr. It. S. Woodward, formerly in charge of
this section, Mr. S. S. Gannett was transferred to fill his place. Besides
determining the position of Sapid City, South Dakota, by astronomic
observation, Mr. Gannett has been occupied in the reduction of obser¬
vations of triangulation in Kansas, Arkansas, and Texas, and in the
computation of primary traverses and in the preparation of tables for
field use by the topographers.

In accordance with a request made by this office, the U. S. Coast and
Geodetic Survey has made astronomic determinations of position at
Jacksonville, Texas; Gainesville, Florida; and Augusta, Georgia —
these positions being needed for the location of topographic work.

DRAFTING DIVISION.

This division, in charge of Mr. Harry King, was engaged during the
early part of the year in the preparation of map illustrations for reports,
and in the proof-reading of engraved atlas sheets. In March of the
present year this section was dissolved, Mr. King’s two assistants being
transferred to the Division of Illustration, and Mr. King being made
proof-reader of maps.

INSTRUMENTS.

The instrument shop, as heretofore, has been in charge of Mr. Edward
KUbel, with four assistants. As heretofore, the work done in the shop
has been practically limited to the repair and adjustment of the instru-

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

ments in the possession of the Survey. This work taxes the resources
of the shop to its utmost limit, aud practically no new instruments
have been made during the year.

ENGRAVING.

In my last report it was stated that there were pending at that time
a contract with Messrs. Sinclair & Co., of Philadelphia, for engraving
100 sheets; one with H. C. Evans, of Baltimore, for 30 sheets; one with
Messrs. Bien & Co., of New York, for 20 sheets, for 48 sheets, and for
the 9-sheet map of the United States. With the exception of that with
Messrs. Bien for 48 sheets, all these contracts have been completed, the
plates furnished this office, and small editions of the maps printed.

Since that date the following contracts have been made: With Evans
& Bartle, 24 sheets, 44 sheets, 23 sheets; with Bien & Co., 25 sheets;
with Messrs. Geo. S. Harris & Sons, 30 sheets, and the map of the
State of Connecticut in 4 sheets.

These six contracts are all pending in various stages of completion.
Besides the sheets engraved under contract, the engraving division of
this office has engraved 28 sheets.

Appended to this report will be found a list of the atlas sheets en¬
graved up to July 1, 1891.

Very respectfully,

Henry Gannett,

Chief Topographer.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

Atlas sheets engraved to June 30 , 1891.

Locality.

Name of sheet.

Newfield .

Maine and New Hamp-

Biddeford .

Kennebunk .

York .

shire.

Dover .

New Hampshire and

Brattleboro .

Vermont.

Massachusetts and New

Newbury port .

Hampshire.

Haverhill .

Lawrence .

Lowell .

Groton .

Fitchburg .

Wincliendon .

Designation of
sheet.

A rea

Scale.

Lat.

Long.

covered.

a ®

o /

43 30

o /

70 15

i's degree . . .

1 : 62, 500

Feet.

43 30

70 45

_ do .

... do .

43 15

70 15

_ do .

... do .

43 15

70 30

_ do .

... do .

43 00

70 30

_ do .

43 00

70 45

_ _ do .

42 45

72 30

_ _ do .

42 45

70 45

... .do .

... do .

42 45

71 00

_ _ do .

... do .

42 30

71 00

_ _ do .

... do .

42 30

71 15

_ _ do .

... do .

42 30

71 30

42 30

71 45

_ do .

.. .do .

42 30

72 00

- do .

. . .do .

OANNKTT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

Atlas sheets engraved to June 30, 1801 — Continued.

Locality.

Massachus o 1 1 8 , New
Hampshire, and Ver¬
mont.

Massachusetts and Ver¬
mont.

Massachusetts, Vermont,
and New York.

Massachusetts and New
York.

Massachusetts .

Massachusetts and Con¬
necticut.

Massachusetts, Connec¬
ticut, and New York.
Massachusetts and
Rhode Island.

Rhode Island .

12 GEOL-

Name of sheet.

Designation of
sheet.

Area

Scale.

Lat.

Long.

covered.

Warwick .

o /

42 30

o /

72 15

A degree . . .

1 : 62, 500

Greenfield .

42 30

72 30

_ do ....

do .

Hawley .

42 30

72 45

_ do .

Grey lock .

42 30

73 00

Berlin .

42 30

73 15

Pittsfield .

42 13

73 15

_ _ do .

do .

Gloucester .

42 30

70 30

_ _ do .

. . . do .

42 30

70 45

Boston Bay .

42 15

... .do .

. . do .

Boston .

42 15

71 00

... .do .

...do .

Framingham .

42 15

71 15

... do .

42 15

71 30

. .do .

Worcester .

42 15

71 45

. . . .do .

.. .do .

Barre .

42 15

72 00

_ do .

42 15

72 15

_ do .

;;;do ::::::

42 15

72 33

. . . .do .

... do .

Chesterfield .

42 15

72 45

. . . .do .

... do .

Becket .

42 15

73 00

. . . .do .

...do .

42 00

70 00

... .do .

...do .

42 00

70 30

_ do .

. . .do .

42 00

70 45

.... do .

42 00

71 00

Wellfleet .

41 45

69 55

_ do .

... do .

41 45

70 30

... .do .

...do .

Middleborough ...

41 45

70 45

....do .

. . - do .

41 45

71 00

_ _ do .

. . do .

41 30

09 45

_ _ do . .

41 30

70 00

_ do .

. . .do .

41 32

70 15

_ do .

...do .

41 30

70 30

_ do .

New Bedford .

41 30

70 45

.... do .

.. .do .

Nantucket .

41 13

69 57

_ _ do .

. . .do .

Muskeget .

41 15

70 12

_ do .

... do .

Marthas Vineyard .

41 15

70 72

70 42

- do .

_ _ do .

. . .do .

42 00

71 45

. . . .do .

...do .

42 00

72 00

_ do .

. . .do .

42 00

72 15

_ do .

. . . do .

42 00

72 30

. . (lo .

... do .

42 00

72 45

_ do .

...do .

Sandisfield .

42 00

73 00

_ do .

...do .

42 00

73 15

_ do .

. . .do .

42 00

71 15

... do .

42 00

71 30

. . do .

41 45

71 15

_ do .

. . . do .

41 30

71 00

. . .do .

...do .

41 45

71 30

.. do . I

Narragansett Bay . .

41 30

71 15

- do .

. . .do . 1

Feet.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS P»Y

Atlas .s'

Locality.

Rhode Island

Rhode Island and Con¬
necticut.

Rhode Island, Connecti¬
cut, and New York.
Connecticut .

Now York and Connecti¬
cut.

Now York .

New York and Now Jer¬
sey.

New Jersey . .

>' engraved to June 30 , 1891 — Continued.

Designation of
sheet.

Name of sheet.

Kent .

Sakonnet

Newport .

Charlestown .
Block Island

Putnam .

J Moosup .

' Stonington . .

Lat.

41 30
41 15
41 15
41 15

41 00

41 45
41 30
41 15

Long.

71 30

71 30
71 45
71 45
71 45

Area

covered.

re degree

. . do -

...do ...
. . .do ....
. . .do ...

. . .do -

. . .do _

...do ....

Scale.

1 : 62, 500
. .do .

.do

£ s
o £

B §3

Feet.

Meriden ....
Waterbary .
New Milford
New Haven.

Derby .

Bridgeport. .
Norwalk. . . .
Stamford . . .

.73

- do .

...do .

. . . .do .

...do .

. . . .do .

. . do .

. . . .do .

-do -

...do .

do .

. . . .do .

_ do .

. . . .do .

Brooklyn .

Harlem .

Staten Island .

Ramapo .

Greenwood Lake . .

Franklin .

Paterson . .

Morristown .

Lake Hopatcong. . .

Hackettstown .

Plainlield .

Somerville .

High Bridge .

Sandy Hook .

New Brunswick . . .

Princeton .

Asbury Park .

Cassville .

Bordentown .

Barnegat .

Whitings .

Pemberton .

Mount Holly .

Long Beach .

Little Egg Harbor

Mullicas .

Hammonton .

Glassboro .

Salem .

Atlantic City .

Great Egg Harbor

Tuckalioe .

Bridgeton .

Sea 1 sle .

73 45

....do .

_ . .do .

73 45

... .do .

do .

74 00

.... do .

. do .

74 00

...do .

... .do .

. do .

74 30

... .do .

74 00

_ do .

...do .

74 15

do .

74 30

... .do .

. . .do .

74 45

_ do .

do ..

74 15

....do .

. . .do .

74 30

...do .

. .do .

74 45

... .do .

. .do .

74 00

.... do .

do .

74 15

. . . .do .

... do _

74 30

. . . .do .

do .

74 00

_ do .

do .

74 15

... .do .

74 30

... .do .

74 00

_ do .

do .

74 15

. . . .do .

74 30

... .do .

do ....

74 45

_ do .

do .

74 00

. . . .do .

. . do .

74 15

_ do .

do .

74 30

_ do .

do .

74 45

_ do ........

.do .

75 00

. . . .do .

do ....

75 15

.do .

74 15

... .do .

.do .

74 30

.... do .

.. do .

74 45

....do .

. do ... .

75 00

. . . .do .

. .do .

74 30

- do .

... do .

GANNETT]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

Atlas sheets engraved to June 30 , 1801 — Continued.

Locality.

Name of sheet.

New Jersey.

New Jersey and Penn¬
sylvania.

Dennisville .

Maurice Cove .

Cape May .

Wall pack .

Delaware Water
Gap.

Designation of
sheet.

Lat.

Long.

o '

39 00

39 00
38 45
41 00

40 45

74 45

75 00
74 45

74 45

75 00

Area

covered.

i« degree
....do ....

....do _

....do ....
_ do —

Scale.

1 : 62, 500

. .do .

..do .

. .do .

Pennsylvania

Easton .

Lambertville
Burlington . .
Philadelphia.

Scranton .

Hazleton ....

Catawissa

New Jersey and Delaware

Maryland .

Maryland and District of
Columbia.

Maryland, District of Co¬
lumbia, and Virginia.

Maryland, Virginia, and
West Virginia.

Maryland and West Vir¬
ginia.

Maryland and Virginia . .

Virginia .

Virginia and West Vir¬
ginia.

Lykens .

Doylestown .

Quaker town .

Lebanon .

Germantown .

Bay side .

Baltimore .

East Washington. .

West Washington .

Mount Vernon .

Harper's Ferry -

Romney .

Piedmont .

Frederick .

Fredericksburg. . . .

Warrenton .

Luray .

Spottsyl vania .

Gordonsville .

Harrisonburg .

Goochland .

Palmyra .

Buckingham .

Lexington .

Natural Bridge

Farmvillc .

Roanoke .

Winchester .

Woodstock .

Franklin .

Beverly .

Staunton .

Monterey .

Lewisburg .

Christiansburg

Dublin .

Pocahontas .

38'

75 00 _ do .

. . . do .

74 45 _ do .

. . .do .

74 45 _ do .

.. .do

75 00 _ do .

. . . do . .

75 30 .... do .

76 15 _ do .

...do ...

76 30 _ do .

75 00 _ do .

... do _

75 15 _ _ do .

- . .do . .

76 15 _ do .

75 00 _ do .

75 15 _ do .

. . .do . .

76 30 _ do .

. . . do . .

76 45 _ do .

. . .do .

77 00 _ do .

77 00 £ degree ....

77 30 _ do .

1 : 125, 000

. . .do .

78 30 _ do .

. . .do .

79 00 _ do .

. . . do .

77 00 _ do .

...do .

77 00 _ do .

... do .

77 30 _ do .

78 00 _ do .

.do .

77 30 _ do .

. . .do .

78 00 ....do .

78 00 _ do .

. .do .

.. .do .

77 30 _ do .

78 00 _ do .

.. .do .

78 30 _ do .

. .do .

79 00 _ do .

. _ .do .

79 30 _ do .

. . .do .

78 00 _ do .

... do .

79 30 _ do .

...do .

78 00 _ do .

78 30 _ do .

. .do .

79 00 _ do .

...do .

79 30 _ do .

...do .

79 00 ...do .

... do .

80 00 _ do .

...do .

80 00 _ do .

. . .do .

80 30 _ do .

81 00 ....do .

. .do .

..do .

t. —

a «

o >

4- t-

a «
O

Feet.

100

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Atlas sheets engraved to June 30, 1891 — Continued.

Locality.

Name of sheet.

Designation of
sheet.

Area

covered.

Scale.

Contour in¬

terval.

Lat.

Long.

Feet.

Virginia and West Vir-

Tazewell .

\ degree ....

1 : 125, 000

100

ginia.

. ...do .

100

.... do .

100

_ _ do .

100

... .do .

100

Hinton .

.... do .

100

Raleigh .

. . . .do .

...do .

100

Oceana .

. . . .do .

100

West Virginia, Virginia

W arfield .

. ...do .

. . .do .

100

and Kentucky.

Prestonburg .

_ do .

...do .

100

Salyers ville .

_ do .

.. .do ..

100

Hazard .

....do .

.. .do .

100

Manchester .

_ _ do .

...do .

100

Kentucky and Virginia . .

Whitesburg .

.... do .

...do .

100

Grundv .

.... do .

100

Virginia and North Caro-

Hillsville .

. . . .do .

... do .

100

lina.

Wythe ville .

. . . .do .

.. .do .

100

Virginia, North Carolina,

Abingdon .

... .do .

. . .do .

100

and Tennessee.

Virginia and Tennessee. .

Bristol .

... .do .

100

Kentucky, Virginia, and

Estillville .

... .do .

... do _

100

Tennessee.

Jonesville .

_ _ do .

. . . do .

100

Cumberland Gap . .

....do .

. . .do .

100

Kentucky and Tennessee.

Williamsburg . ...

_ do .

. . .do _

100

Wilkesboro .

_ do .

100

Morganton .

. . . .do .

...do .

100

Cowee .

....do

100

North Carolina anil Ten-

Roan Mountain ....

_ do .

. . .do ....

100

Cranberry .

... .do .

... do . .

100

Greeneville .

... .do .

100

Mount Mitchell

_ do .

100

Asheville .

... .do .

100

Mount Guyot .

_ do .

. . .do .

100

Knoxville .

_ _ do .

... do _

100

Nantahalah .

. . . .do .

.. .do

100

Murphy .

....do .

. . .do . .

100

North Carolina and South

Saluda .

_ do .

... do _

100

Carolina.

Pisgah .

100

Tennessee .

Morristown .

_ _ do . .

100

Maynardville .

_ _ do .

. . .do .

100

Loudon .

. . . .do .

. . .do .

100

Kingston .

....do ..

...do ...

100

Cleveland .

_ _ do .

. . .do .

100

Chattanooga .

.... do _

100

South Carolina .

Pickens .

100

South Carolina and Geor-

Walhalla .

. . . .do . .

100

gia.

Georgia .

Dahlonega .

100

Ellijay .

100

Dalton .

100

Carnesville .

....do .

. . -do .

100

GANNETT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

Atlas sheets engraved to June SO , 1801 — Continued.

Locality.

Name of sheet.

Designation of
sheet.

Lat.

Long.

Suwanee .

Cartersville .

Atlanta .

Marietta .

Georgia and Alabama -

Ringgold .

Rome .

Tallapoosa .

Stevenson .

Scottsboro .

Huntsville .

Fort Payne .

Gadsden .

Cullman .

Anniston .

Springville .

Birmingham .

Ashland .

Talladega .

Bessemer .

Clanton .

Waterloo .

Madison .

Koshkonong .

Stoughton .

Evansville .

Riverside .

Baldwin .

Monticello .

Anamosa .

Marion .

Shellsburg .

DeWitt .

Wheatland .

Tipton .

Mechanicsville ....

Cedar Rapids .

Amana .

West Liberty .

Iowa City .

Oxford .

Davenport .

Durant .

Wilton Junction . .

Missouri and Illinois . . . .

Louisiana .

St. Louis, East -

Missouri .

Mexico .

Moberly .

Area

covered.

Scale.

J degree ....

1 : 125, 000

. . .do .

. . . do .

. . .do .

...do .

.do ..

. . .do .

. .do .

...do .

.do .

...do .

... do .

. . .do .

. .do .

...do .

... do .

...do .

. .do .

. . .do .

...do .

do .

... do .

_ do .

. . .do .

. do .

. . .do .

do .

. . .do .

...do .

.do .

ts degree . . .

1 : 62, 500

. . .do .

. .do .

. . .do .

do .

. . .do .

do ..

. . .do .

...do .

. . .do .

...do .

. . .do .

... do .

...do .

. -do .

. . .do .

do .

...do .

. . .do .

.do .

_ do .

. do .

_ do .

...do .

do ....

...do .

. .do .

...do .

. . .do .

J degree ....

1 : 125, 000

A degree . .

1 : 62, 500

. . . do .

J degree ....

1 : 125, 000

...do .

Feet.

100

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Atlas sheets engraved to June 30, 1891 — Continued.

Locality.

Missouri

Missouri ami Kansas

Kansas

Name of sheet.

Designation of
sheet.

Area

covered.

Scale.

Contour in¬
terval.

Lat.

Long.

o /

0 /

Feet.

Glasgow .

39 00

92 30

J degree ....

1 : 125, 000

39 00

93 00

_ do .

. . .do .

30 00

93 30

... do .

39 00

94 00

.... do .

. . .do .

38 30

91 00

. . . .do . .

. . .do .

Fulton . :...

38 30

91 30

.... do .

. . .do .

38 30

92 00

... .do _ _

. . .do .

38 30

92 30

_ do ..

. . . do .

Sedalia .

38 30

93 00

... .do .

. . .do .

38 30

93 30

... do .

Harrisonville .

38 30

94 00

....do .

... do .

38 00

92 00

. . do .

38 00

92 30

_ do .

38 00

93 00

38 00

93 30

_ do .

. . do .

Butler .

38 00

94 00

.... do _ _

. . do .

Bolivar .

37 30

93 00

_ do .

Stockton .

37 30

93 30

.... do .

Nevada .

37 30

94 00

.... do .

Springfield .

37 00

93 00

_ do .

... do .

Greenfield .

37 00

93 30

_ do .

.. do .

Carthage .

37 00

94 00

_ _ do . .

Atchison .

39 30

95 00

_ do .

do .

Kansas City .

39 00

94 30

.... do . .

. . do .

Olathe .

38 30

94 30

_ do .

Mound City .

38 00

94 30

. . . .do

Fort Scott .

37 30

94 30

_ do .

...do .

Joplin .

37 00

94 30

.... do .

... do .

Hiawatha .

39 30

95 30

....do .

...do .

Seneca .

39 30

96 00

_ _ do .

... do . .

Marysville .

39 30

96 30

_ _ do .

... do _

Oskaloosa .

39 00

95 00

_ do .

. . do .

Topeka .

39 00

95 30

_ do .

... do _

W amego .

39 00

96 00

... .do .

Junction City .

39 00

96 30

.... do .

Lawrence .

38 30

95 00

_ _ do .

.. do .

Burlingame .

38 30

95 30

_ do .

. . do .

Eskridge .

38 30

90 00

Parkerville .

38 30

96 30

... .do .

... do .

Abilene .

38 30

97 00

Garnett .

38 00

95 00

Burlington .

38 00

95 30

Emporia .

38 00

96 00

_ do .

Cottonwood Falls. .

38 00

96 30

. . . .do .

...do .

N e wton . . .

38 00

97 00

_ do .

Hutchinson .

38 00

97 30

... .do .

Lyons .

38 00

98 00

. . . .do

Great Bend .

38 00

98 30

_ do .

do .

Earned .

38 00

99 00

....do

Ness City .

38 00

99 30

Iola .

37 30

95 00

Fredonia .

37 30

95 30

...do .

OANNKTT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

Atlas sheets engraved to June 30 , 1891 — Continued.

Locality

Kansas

Arkansas

Texas

Name of sheet.

Designation of
sheet.

A rea

Scale.

Contour in¬

terval.

Lat.

Long.

covered.

Eureka .

O 1

37 30

o -

00 00

\ decree . .

1 : 125, 000

. . do .

Feet.

37 30

Of) 30

37 30

97 00

. . .do .

.. do .

37 30

07 30

...do .

37 30

OS 00

...do

...do .

Pratt .

37 30

98 30

. . . .do .

...do .

37 30

9!) 00

. . .do .

37 30

99 30

...do .

.. .do .

37 00

95 00

...do .

. . .do .

37 00

95 30

. . -do

.. .do .

37 00

90 00

... do .

37 00

96 30

Wellington .

97 00

...do .

Caldwell .

37 00

97 30

...do .

37 00

98 00

. . .do .

30 30

92 00

. . . do .

35 30

92 30

...do

. . . do .

35 00

92 30

_ do .

...do .

35 00

93 03

...do .

Magazine Moun-

35 00

93 30

....do .

.. do .

tain.

35 00

94 00

. . do .

34 30

92 30

...do

... do .

Hot Springs .

34 30

93 00

...do .

.. .do .

34 30

93 30

. . .do .

34 30

94 00

. . . .do .

...do .

Aplin .

35 00

93 00

94 15

Degree .

1 : 62, 500

...do .

35 00

92 45

. . .do .

35 00

94 00

. . .do .

35 00

92 45

... do .

35 00

93 15

Russellville .

35 15

93 00

.... do .

. . .do .

Clarksville .

35 15

93 15

_ _ do .

... do .

Coal Hill .

35 15

93 30

35 15

94 15

94 00

Arbuckle .

_ do .

...do .

93 45

_ _ do .

. . do .

35 15

32 30

92 45

90 30

.. .do .

Dallas .

J degree ....

1 : 125, 000

32 30

97 00

. .do .

32 30

97 30

... do .

32 30

98 00

, . . do .

32 30

98 30

. . .do .

32 30

99 00

_ do .

. . .do .

i Anson .

32 30

99 30

_ do .

...do .

32 00

97 00

_ _ do .

...do .

Gran bury .

32 00

97 30

. . . .do .

do .

32 00

98 00

_ do .

...do .

32 00

98 30

. . . .do .

. . do .

31 30

97 30

. . . do .

Hamilton .

31 30

98 00

...do .

. . .do .

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Atlas sheets engraved to June 30,1891.

Locality.

Texas

Montana

Yellowstone National
Park.

Idaho .

Oregon .

Colorado .

Colorado and Utah

Name of sheet.

Designation of
sheet.

Area

covered.

Scale.

Contourin- 1
terval.

Lat.

Long.

o /

o -

Feet.

31 30

98 30

J degree .

1 : 125. 000

31 30

99 00

. . .do .

. do . .

31 00

97 30

. . . .do .

. . do . .

31 00

98 00

_ do .

do ... .

31 00

98 30

_ do .

31 00

99 00

_ do .

... do . .

Taylor .

30 30

97 00

....do .

. . .do _ _ _

30 30

97 30

30 30

98 00

... .do .

...do .

30 30

98 30

. . . .do .

... do .

30 30

99 00

... .do .

30 00

97 00

.... do .

... do .

30 00

97 30

... .do .

...do .

30 00

98 00

.... do .

30 00

98 30

.... do .

... do .

30 00

99 00

... .do .

... do .

Port Benton .

47 00

110 00

1 degree ....

1 : 250, 000

200

Great Falls .

47 00

111 00

.... do .

. . .do .

200

Big Snowy Moun-

46 00

109 00

. . . .do .

. . .do .

200

tain.

Little Belt Moun-

46 00

110 00

.... do .

200

tain.

Fort Logan .

46 00

111 00

200

Helena .

46 00

112 00

.... do .

. . .do .

200

Livingston .

45 00

110 00

.... do .

... do .

200

Three Forks .

45 00

111 00

... .do .

... do .

200

Dillon .

45 00

112 00

... .do .

... do .

200

Canyon .

44 30

110 00

J degree ....

1 : 125, 000

100

Gallatin .

44 30

110 30

. . . .do .

100

Lake .

44 00

110 00

100

Shoshone .

44 00

110 30

100

Camas Prairie .

43 00

115 00

... do .

100

Mount Home .

43 00

115 30

... .do .

. . .do .

ICO

Klamath .

42 00

121 00

1 degree . . . .

1 : 250, 000

200

42 00

122 00

200

East Denver .

39 30

104 30

J degree . . . .

1 : 125, 000

Crested Butte .

38 45

106 45

i k degree . . .

1 : 62, 500

100

Anthracite .

38 45

107 00

_ _ do .

100

Arroya .

38 30

103 00

\ degree . . . .

1 : 125, 000

100

Sanborn .

38 30

103 30

100

Big Springs .

38 30

104 00

100

Las Animas .

38 00

103 00

100

Gatlin .

38 00

103 30

100

Nepesta .

38 00

104 00

100

Pueblo .

38 00

104 30

100

Higbee .

37 30

103 00

100

Timpas .

37 30

103 30

100

Apishapa .

37 30

104 00

100

Ashley .

40 00

109 00

1 degree . . . .

1 : 250, 000

250

East Tavaputs . . . .

39 00

109 00

... .do .

.. .do .

250

La Sal .

38 00

109 00

250

Abajo .

37 00

109 00

- do .

. . do .

250

GANNETT. ]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

Atlas sheets engraved to June 30, 1891.

Locality.

Name of sheet.

Designation of
sheet.

Lat.

Long.

110

Salt Lake .

111

Tooele Valiev .

! 112

Price River .

110

Manti .

Sevier Desert .

112

San Rafael .

i 110

Pish Lake .

Beaver .

112

Henry Mountain . . .

Escalante .

Kanab .

112

St. George .

113

114

117

Disaster .

118

Long Valley .

119

Granite Range .

119

Carson .

119

120

Modoc Lava Bed . . .

121

Shasta .

122

Honey Lake .

120

Lassen Peak .

121

Red Bluff .

122

Downieville .

120

Bid well Bar .

121

Chico .

121

Colfax .

120

Nevada Citv .

121

Marvsville .

121

30 !

Placerville .

120

Sacramento .

121

Jackson .

120

107

Chaco .

108

Santa Clara .

106

Jemez .

106

Albuquerque .

106

Mount Taylor .

107

Wingate .

108

New Mexico and Arizona

Canyon de Chelly . .

109

Fort Defiance .

109

St.Johns .

109

110

Echo Cliffs .

111

Kaibab .

112

Mount Trumbull . .

113

Tusayan .

110

San Francisco

111

Mountain.

Chino .

112

....do .

_ do .

....do .

_ do . .

- do .

....do .

1 degree

...do .

i degree . . .

— do .

. . .do .

1 degree

...do .

— do .

— do . .

...do . .

.. .do .

_ do .

. . .do .

...do .

. . .do .

. do .

. . do .

...do .

. . do . .

1 : 250, 000

..do . .

1 : 125, 000

..do . .

1 : 250, 000

. .do .

..do .

. .do .

..do .

. .do .

..do .

. .do .

..do .

Area

covered.

Scale.

1 degree . . . .

1 : 250, 000

... .do .

. . . .do .

_ do .

.. .do

_ do .

.. .do ..

_ do .

.. .do .

_ do .

.. .do .

.... do .

.. .do ..

1 _ _ do .

.. .do ...

. . . .do .

....do .

...do _

.... do .

...do _

.... do .

. . . .do .

. . .do _

... .do .

.. do .

I degree ....

1 : 125, 000

1 degree ....

1 : 250, 000

_ do .

... do .

_ do .

. . .do .

... .do . .

.. .do .

....do .

. . .do .

. . . .do .

... do .

\ degree ....

1 : 125,000

....do .

... do .

t- —
5 cC

.do

Feet.

250

200

100

200

100

200

250

200

250

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Atlas sheets engraved to June 30, 1891 — Continued.

Locality.

Name of sheet.

Designation of
sheet.

Area

Scale.

r- Cw

Lat.

Long.

covered.

S £

Diamond Creek ....

o /

35 00

O 1

113 00

1 : 250, 000

... do .

Feet.

250

34 00

110 00

_ do .

200

Verde .

34 00

111 00

.... do .

... do .

200

34 00

112 00

_ do .

. do .

200

Arizona anil Nevada .

Arizona, Nevada, and
California.

36 00

114 00

250

35 00

114 00

_ do ..

REPORT OF MR. A. H. THOMPSON.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Western Division of Topography,

Washington , 1). G., June 30, 1891.

Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report of the work of
the Topographic Division West of the one hundredth meridian for the
last year.

On account of the commencement of field work before the end of the
fiscal year and the impossibility of separating the amount of work
actually done before July 1, 1891, from that of the succeeding year, my
report of work includes only that done between July 1, 1890, and May
1, 1891.

Work was prosecuted during this period in California, Colorado,
Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas,
and New Mexico, and in the office at Washington, D. C., in accordance
with plans submitted to and approved by you.

GENERAL ORGANIZATION.

For convenience of supervision and administrative management, five
sections for the prosecution of work were organized at the beginning of
the year. Upon the passage of the sundry civil bill, August 30, 1890,
and in accordance with the provisions of that act requiring that one-lialf
of the gross appropriations for topographic work be spent west of the
one hundredth meridian, two additional sections were formed, making
seven sections in all. Of these the States of California and Nevada
constituted the first, Colorado the second, Idaho the the third, Kansas
and Texas the fourth, Montana the fifth, North Dakota the sixth, and
New Mexico the seventh. The work in South Dakota was of such a
nature that no section was organized.

Mr. E. M. Douglas, topographer, was assigned to the charge of
the California-Nevada section, assisted by Messrs. A. F. Dunnington,

Thompson.] tllF HEADS OF DIVISIONS. 43

R. H. McKee, R. IT. Chapman, topographers; H. E. 0. Feusier and
P. V. S. Bartlett, assistant topographers, in charge of parties.

Mr. Willard I). Johnson, topographer, was assigned to the charge of
the Colorado section, assisted by Messrs. C. IT. Fitch, Jno. W. Hays,
R. C. McKinney, W. S. Post, and R. B. Marshall, topographers; A. C.
Barclay, R. A. Farmer, S. P. Johnson, assistant topographers in charge
of parties, and Messrs. S. A. Foot, Perry Fuller, L. B. Kendall, C. H.
Stone, assistant topographers.

Mr. W. T. Griswold, topographer, was assigned to the charge of the
Idaho section, assisted by Mr. E. T. Perkins, jr., in charge of party.

Mr. R. U. Goode, geographer, was assigned to the charge of the
Kansas-Texas section, assisted by Messrs. H. L. Baldwin, II. S. Wal¬
lace, R. O. Gordon, C. F. Urquliart, W. II. Herron, topographers in
charge of parties, and Messrs. Geo. H. Lamar, E. McLean Long, R. B.
Cameron, and A. E. Wilson, assistant topographers.

Mr. Frank Tweedy, topographer, was assigned to the charge of the
section of Montana, assisted by Mr. Jeremiah Ahern, in charge of party,
and Mr. Frank E. Gove, assistant topographer.

Mr. Morris Bien, topographer, was given charge of the North Dakota
section, assisted by Mr. Wm. J. Peters, topographer in charge of party,
and Messrs W. B. Corse and C. T. Ried, assistant topographers.

Mr. A. P. Davis was assigned to the charge of the New Mexico sec¬
tion, assisted by Messrs. F. J. Knight, J. B. Lippincott, and C. C. Bas¬
sett, topographers in charge of parties.

Mr. S. S. Gannett, assisted by Mr. A. F. Dunnington and working in
cooperation with Prof. H. S. Pritchett of Washington University, St.
Louis, Missouri, had charge of the field work in South Dakota.

ORGANIZATION FOR FIELD WORK.

In the California-Nevada section one triangulation and four topo¬
graphic parties were organized; in the Colorado section one level and
seven topographic parties ; in the Idaho section one triangulation and
two topographic parties; in the Kansas-Texas section two triangulation,
one level, and three topographic parties; in the Montana section one
triangulation-topographic and one topographic party; in the North
Dakota section two leveling and topographic parties; and in New Mex¬
ico section one triangulation and two topographic parties.

The field work of these parties being as heretofore in a sparsely set¬
tled region, it was usually necessary to subsist them in camps. The
arrangements for this purpose were nearly the same in all localities,
each party employing, in addition to the regularly appointed assistants,
one or two persons as traverse or rod men, one laborer, one cook, and
one teamster, using as means of transportation one large four-mule team
and wagon for camp equipage and supplies, and buck boards or saddle
animals for persons engaged in map work.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

ATLAS SHEETS.

In all sections the work proceeded by atlas-sheet areas according to
the general system adopted by the U. S. Geological Survey, and was
bounded as far as practicable by the half or quarter degree lines of
latitude and longitude. The field work was usually done on twice the
scale intended for publication, the relief being represented by contour
lines having equal vertical intervals, but differing on different sheets
and sometimes on the same sheet.

The following table shows the locality, the scale of field work, the
contour interval, and area surveyed during the year.

Locality.

Scale field work.

Contour

interval.

Square

miles

surveyed.

Remarks.

Feet.

100-50

100-50-25

100-50

50-100

25-50-100

1, 000
8, 700
1,900
1,900

400

2, 800
2, 850

730-mile levels.

Astronomical station, Rapid
City.

1 inch — 1 mile .

1,925

Total .

21, 475

In addition to topographic map work, the sections of California, Ne¬
vada, Colorado, Montana, and New Mexico located, surveyed, and
reported for segregation from the public domain 147 reservoir sites lying
within those areas.

The following table shows the States and Territories within which
reservoir sites were located and surveyed, the number in each, and the
date upon which their segregation was asked, and the total area which
was recommended for segregation.

Locality.

Number

reser¬

voirs.

Date of
segregation.

Area seg¬
regated.

California .

Feb. 27, 1891.

A cres.

21, 192

56, 814
30, 113
2,040
55, 773

Colorado .

Montana .

N e vada _ _ _ _

New Mexico .

. 1 .

Total .

147

165, 932

THOMPSON.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

FIELD WORK.

CALIFORNIA-NEVADA SECTION.

The organization and outfitting of parties for this work was completed
at lone, California, and Reno, Nevada, early in July, and they were
directed to proceed to the survey of areas known as the Sierra Valley
and Big Tree sheets in California; the Reno, Wadsworth, Wabuskaand
Wellington sheets in Nevada, all lying between longitude 119° and 120°
west, and latitude 38° and 40° north.

The triangulation party was placed under charge of Mr. H. E. C.
Feusier, and directed to select and locate a sufficient number of points
on each atlas sheet to furnish the topographers with the data necessary
for the control of their work.

Mr. A. F. Dunnington, with his party, was directed to complete the
survey of the Sierra Valley sheet in California, the Wadsworth and the
northern part of the Wabuska sheets in Nevada. To Mr. McKee was
assigned the Big Tree sheet in California; to Mr. Chapman the comple¬
tion of the Reno and Wellington sheets in Nevada, and to Mr. Bartlett
the Wabuska sheet, in the same State. Mr. Douglas was employed
during the entire field season in supervision and inspection of work and
in attending to administrative details relating to the disbandment of
the Irrigation Survey and the prosecution of his own work.

In addition to the topographic work assigned these parties, they were
also directed to survey and report upon the reservoir sites suitable for
the storage of water for purposes of irrigation. Each party, with the
exception of Mr. Dunuingtou’s, was engaged during the latter part of
the season upon this work. Thirty-three such sites were located with
reference to the U. S. Land Survey, the necessary height of dam de¬
cided upon, the area embraced by the reservoir at the given height of
the dam, the approximate content in acre feet, and the amount of land
described in terms of the U. S. Land Survey necessary to segregate for
each reservoir site determined.

By November 15 work in this section was closed, the parties dis¬
banded, camp equipage and field material stored, and the animals
placed in winter quarters. Mr. Douglas, with his assistants, was then
directed to proceed to Washington, District of Columbia, for office
work.

COLORADO SECTION.

The organization and outfitting of parties assigned to the work of this
section was completed under the direction of Mr. W. D. Johnson, at
Pueblo, Colorado, early in July. The parties were then directed to pro¬
ceed to the survey of the uncompleted portion of the drainage basin of
the Arkansas River, lying east of the work of the preceding year, but
within the boundaries of the State of Colorado, an area of 8,700 square

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

miles, and including within its limits the half-degree atlas sheets desig¬
nated as Mesa de Maya, Mount Carrizo, Vilas, Albany, Granada, Lamar,
Cheyenne Wells, Kit Carson, Limon, Kiowa, and Hugo. All ol' these
were full atlas sheets except the last two named.

In addition, revision work was to be done on the Springfield and Two
Buttes sheets previously surveyed.

For this work seven plane-table parties and one level party were or¬
ganized under Messrs. Hays, McKinney, Post, Marshall, Barclay,
Farmer, S. P. Johnson, and Holman, respectively.

To Mr. Hays was assigned the work on the Vilas sheet, to Mr. McKin¬
ney the Kit Carson and part of the Lamar sheet, to Mr. Post the Limon
and such portions as were to be worked ofthe Kiowa and Hugo sheets, to
Mr. Marshall the Albany sheet and the revision of portions of the
Springfield and Two Buttes sheets, to Mr. Barclay the Mesa de Maya
and portions of the Mount Carrizo sheets, to Mr. Farmer the Mount
Carrizo and the revision of the portions of the Springfield and Two
Buttes sheets not assigned, to Mr. Marshall and to Mr. S. P. Johnson
the Cheyenne Wells and portions of the Lamar and Granada sheets;
Mr. Holman’s work, being linear in character, necessarily extended over
a portion of several atlas sheets.

As the season progressed, these parties and assignment of areas were
somewhat changed to meet the varying conditions of the work, and
Messrs. Fuller and Foot were given small parties and assigned to sep¬
arate areas. Mr. Fitch was detailed, before field work commenced, for
special duty in California with the General Land Office, and remained
on that service during the entire season. Mr. Kendall was also detached
during the months of September, October, and November for service
with the Idaho and Montana sections.

During the month of October and the first half of November all topo¬
graphic work was suspended and the entire force engaged in the location
and survey of previously selected reservoir sites, for the storage of
waters for irrigation purposes. Forty-five such sites were located and
surveyed with reference to the U. S. Land Survey, the site and neces¬
sary height of dam decided upon, the area included within the reservoir
at the given height of dam ascertained, the approximate content in
acre-feet calculated, and the subdivisions of the U. S. Land Survey
necessary to segregate for each reservoir site determined.

Mr. Johnson was engaged during the entire season in supervision and
inspection of work and in attending matters of detail relating to the
disbandment ofthe Irrigation Survey.

The work assigned this section was completed by the different parties
between December 15, 1890, and January 15, 1891, when the parties
were disbanded, the camp equipage and field material stored, and the
animals placed in winter quarters. Mr. Johnson and his assistants were
then directed to proceed to Washington, District of Columbia, for office
work.

THOMPSON.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

IDAHO SECTION.

The work of this section was commenced early in July under the
direction of Mr. W. T. Griswold at Boise City, but no permanent parties
were organized until the 1st of September, the time being employed in
expanding the triangulation over the atlas sheets designed to survey
and in receiving and storing the camp equipage and field material of
the parties who had been engaged in the Irrigation Survey.

On September 1 one triangulation and two topographic parties were
organized and outfitted under charge of Mr. Griswold, Mr. Perkins, and
Field Assistant W. P. Trowbridge, respectively.

The party under Mr. Griswold extended the triangulation and con¬
trol work over two half-degree atlas sheets lying west and north of the
previously surveyed areas and known as the Boise City and Bisuka
sheets, an area of 1,850 square miles. To the party under charge of
Mr. Perkins, temporarily under Mr. L. B. Kendall, detailed from the Col¬
orado section, during Mr. Perkins’s absence on account of sickness, was
assigned the survey of the Boise City sheet, while to the party under
Mr. Trowbridge was assigned the work on the Bisuka sheet.

All the parties of this section completed the work assigned them by
November 15, and were then directed to proceed to Washington, Dis¬
trict of Columbia, for office work.

KANSAS— TEXAS SECTION.

This section was formed after the passage of the sundry civil bill,
August 30, 1890, and in accordance with its provisions, by the transfer
of parties working in Texas and Kansas to areas west of the one hun¬
dredth meridian.

In Texas one triangulation, one level, and two topographic parties,
and in Kansas one triangulation and one topographic party were thus
transferred and placed under charge of Mr. It. IJ. Goode, geographer,
forming the Kansas-Texas section.

To the triangulation party in Kansas under charge of Mr. II. L. Bald¬
win was assigned the work of extending the belt of control triangulation
westward up the valley of the Arkansas River, and to the topographic
party under Mr. W. II. Herron, assisted by Mr. Geo. II. Lamar, was as¬
signed the survey of the half-degree atlas sheets known as the Dodge
City and Meade sheets. In Texas to the party under Mr. Urquhart was
assigned the extension of the triangulation over four half-degree atlas
sheets lying immediately west of the one hundredth meridian, and
between latitudes 31° and 33' north; to the level party under Mr. Wil¬
son the survey of level lines over the same area, and to the topographic
parties of Mr. Gordon and Mr. Wallace, assisted by Mr. Cameron and
Mr. Long, the topographic mapping of the San Angelo and Hayrick
sheets respectively. Mr. Goode was engaged in supervising and in¬
specting the work of the various parties and in such administrative
duties as were rendered necessary by the transfer of these parties.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

The work assigned was successfully completed by November 15, the
parties were disbanded, the camp equipage and field material stored,
and the animals placed in winter quarters, and Mr. Goode and his as¬
sistants were instructed to proceed to Washington, District of Columbia,
for office work.

MONTANA SECTION.

To this section was first assigned the topographic survey of the drain¬
age basin of Sun Eiver. For this purpose Mr. Tweedy organized one
triangulation and topographic party under himself, assisted by Mr. F.
E. Gove, and one topographic party under Mr. Ahern, but after some
400 square miles had been surveyed both the parties were directed to
locate and survey the reservoir sites for the storage of water for irriga¬
tion purposes which had been previously designated in Montana.

Twenty-eight such sites were located and surveyed with reference
to the United States Land Survey, the sight and necessary height of
dam decided upon, the area within the reservoir at the given height
ascertained, the approximate content in acre-feet calculated and the sub¬
divisions of the United States -Land Survey necessary to segregate for
each reservoir site determined.

This work was completed by November 15, when Mr. Tweedy was
directed to disband his parties, store his camp equipage and field mate¬
rial, place his animals in winter quarters, and report with his assistants
in W ashingtou, District of Columbia, for office work.

NEW MEXICO SECTION.

The organization and outfitting of parties for work in this section were
completed under the direction of Mr. A. P. Davis early in July. To the
party under Mr. F. J. Knight was assigned the extension of the trian¬
gulation over the area included between longitudes 105° and 105° 30'
west and latitudes 35° and 35° 30' north, comprising three atlas sheets,
known as the Lamy, Galisteo, and Corazon sheets. To the party under
Mr. Lippincott was assigned the survey of the Lamy and Corazon sheets,
and to the party under Mr. Bassett the Galisteo sheet. These sheets
were completed about November 1, when the parties of Mr. Lippincott
and Mr. Bassett were directed to locate and survey the reservoir sites
which had been previously designated for the storage of water for irri¬
gation purposes.

Thirty-nine sites were located with reference to the United States
land surveys, the site and necessary height of dam decided upon, the
area within the reservoir at the given height of dam ascertained, the
approximate content in acre-feet calculated, and the subdivisions of the
United States land survey necessary to be segregated for each reser¬
voir site determined.

This work was completed December 15, when Mr. Davis was directed
to disband his parties, with the exception of a small force under Field
Assistant Joseph Jacobs, store his camp equipage and field material,

THOMPSON.] THE heads of divisions. 49

place liis animals in winter quarters, and report with his assistants at
Washington, District of Columbia, for office work.

The small party under Mr. Jacobs was directed to proceed to southern
New Mexico and revise the work previously done on the Las Cruces and
La Union sheets. Mr. Jacobs completed this revision April 15, 1891,
and under direction then proceeded to El Paso, Texas, and commenced
work in that vicinity, where he is at present engaged.

NORTH DAKOTA SECTION.

This section was formed after the passage of the sundry civil bill, Au¬
gust 30, 1890, by the transfer of Mr. William J. Peters, topographer,
and Mr. C. T. Reid, assistant topographer, from the division of topog¬
raphy east of the one hundredth meridian, and the assignment of Mr.
W. B. Corse to duty with it, and placed under charge of Mr. Morris Bien.

To this section were assigned the running of transit and level lines to
ascertain the height of the lowest passes in the divide between the Mis¬
souri River and the Mouse and James Rivers and the establishment of
bench-marks for use in the topographic survey of that region. To do
this work Mr. Bien organized two level and transit parties at Minot,
North Dakota, and taking the field August 15 prosecuted his work
until compelled by weather to close, about December 1, 1890.

In all, 730 miles of level lines were run, with the result of showing
that the lowest point on the divide between the rivers named was some
200 feet higher than low water in the Missouri River at the western
boundary of the State of North Dakota. A large number of bench¬
marks for future topographic work were established and very interesting-
features connected with the ancient lake beds of the region discovered.

SOUTH DAKOTA SECTION.

As preliminary to future topographic work in South Dakota, it was
decided to determine the latitude and longitude of a station at Rapid
City.

Mr. S. S. Gannett was detailed to make the necessary astronomical
observations. In this work he was assisted by Mr. A. F. Dunnington,
who was detached from the California-Nevada section for this purpose.
For the purpose of determining longitude it was decided to exchange
time signals with St. Louis, and the services of Prof. H. S. Pritchett, of
the Washington University, were procured to conduct the necessary ob¬
servations and exchanges at that place. Mr. Gannett commenced work
at Rapid City on October 23, and by November 20 had completed the
necessary observations and exchanges with St. Louis, giving, when all
reductions were made, the following:

Longitude, pier Rapid City, 103° 12' west.

• Latitude, pier Rapid City, 44° 04' 45,24//.

Upon the completion of this work Mr. Gannett and his assistant, Mr.
Dunnington, returned to Washington, District of Columbia, for office
work.

12 GrEOL

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

METHODS OF FIELD WORK.

The field work of all the sections was conducted on essentially the
same methods, though the manner of its execution varied with local
conditions. It consisted in the determination of linear distances and of
altitudes and in the conventional representation of topographic forms and
cultural features.

In the California-Nevada and Colorado sections the linear distances
were derived from and controlled by the triangulations expanded from
the stations of the transcontinental triangulation of the U. S. Coast and
Geodetic Survey in those States; in Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, and
Texas, from stations in systems of triangulation expanded from bases
measured by the U. S. Geological Survey; and in Kansas from land
survey measurements controlled and corrected by the triangulation of
the U. S. Geological Survey.

Plane-table traverses, using the compass for directions and some form
of odometer for distances, were employed for intermediate locations in
addition to triangulation and plane-table work from stations, and thus
the whole area of every atlas sheet was covered by a network of care¬
fully determined linear lines.

The altitudes of points in the area surveyed were determined by hori¬
zontal or angular leveling or by the use of aneroid or mercurial barom¬
eters. In all cases a number of accurately determined bench-marks
were located on each atlas sheet, and to these all subordinate points
were referred. The representation of topographic features was secured
by sketching from stations occupied in both plane-table and traverse
work. This sketching was done in contours having a prescribed ver¬
tical interval.

OFFICE WORK.

Immediately on the disbandment of the field parties, all persons be¬
longing to the permanent force were directed to report at the office of
the U. S. Geological Survey in Washington, District of Columbia, for
office work. This force was organized by the same sections as the field
work, giving to each person who had charge of a field section charge of
the office work of that section, and assigning to each person the con¬
struction of the maps of the area of which he had done the field work,
thus securing in the drawing of the maps all knowledge gained by per¬
sonal observation in the field. On May 1, 1891, the final drawings of
maps of the areas surveyed by each of the sections were completed
ready for the engraver.

The following table shows the locality of each full atlas sheet, the
scale upon which the final drawing was made, the scale of publication,
and the contour interval.

THOMPSON.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

Locality.

California ....
Colorado .

Name of sheet.

Idaho .

Kansas .

Nevada .

New Mexico

Texas .

Sierraville .

Mesa de Maya . . .
Mount Carrizo. . .

Springfield .

Vilas .

Albany .

Two Buttes .

Lamar .

Granada .

Cheyenne Wells .

Kit Carson .

Limon .

Boise .

Bisuka .

Dodge City .

Meade .

Keno .

Wadsworth .

Wabuska .

Wellington .

Lamy .

Galisteo .

San Pedro .

Corazon .

Scale of drawing.

Hayrick

1 inch = l mile .

...do .

.. .do .

...do .

1 : 125,000 .

. . .do .

...do .

1 ineh = l mile .

...do .

1 : 125,000 .

1 inch = 1 mile .

1 : 125, 000 .

...do .

Publication

scale.

1 : 125, 000

. .do .

..do .

. .do .

..do .

. .do .

..do .

. .do .

..do .

. .do .

..do .

. .do .

..do .

. -do .

Contour

interval.

Feet.

100

25-50-100

25-50

50-100

100

50-100

In addition to the preparation of the maps designated, plats generally
on the scale of 2 inches equal 1 mile were made of all the reservoir sites
surveyed. These plats showed the location selected for the dam, the
boundary line of the water surface of the reservoir at the selected height of
dam, its location on the subdivisions of the United States land surveys,
and the areas designated by the township, range, sections, and subdivisions
of sections necessary to be segregated to reserve the site. These plats
were accompanied by short descriptions of each reservoir site, giving
the county within which it was situated, the stream upon which it was
located, the area of drainage basin which would supply it, the general
altitude of the basin, character of topography, water-supply, bench¬
marks, approximate contents, etc., and where the irrigable lands which
the reservoir should serve were located. With these plats were also
prepared schedules describing, in terms of the United States Land Sur¬
vey, the areas necessary to be segregated for each reservoir and the
present condition of the title to these laud so far as shown by the records
of the General Land Office.

Upon the completion of the final drawing of the atlas sheets surveyed
during the year and the preparation of the plats, descriptions, and
schedules of reservoirs, the permanent force of each section, with the
exception of Mr. Fred J. Knight, who was retained in the office at Wash¬
ington, District of Columbia, to prepare a map of the drainage basin of

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

the Arkansas River in Colorado, was directed to proceed to the field
and organize parties for work during the ensuing year in accordance
with plans submitted to and approved by you. This duty is now being
performed.

DISBURSEMENTS.

The disbursements of money for the work of the Topographic Division
west of the one hundredth meridian from July 1 to December 31, 1890,
were under the direction of Mr. H. C. Rizer. His duties were performed
at the field office established at Topeka, Kansas, and at the office of the
U. S. Geological Survey in Washington, District of Columbia. Since
January 1, 1891, the disbursements have been made by Mr. Jas. W.
Spencer from the office of the U. S. Geological Survey at Washington,
District of Columbia.

1 am, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

A. H. Thompson,

Geographer in Charge Topographic Division

West of One Hundreth Meridian.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

REPORT OF MR. G. K. GILBERT.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Geologic Branch,
Washington , D. C., June 50, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit the following report on the work of
the Geologic Branch for the fiscal year ending to-day.

The general organization of the branch has remained unchanged, but
as the appropriation of money for this fiscal year was greater than for
the preceding year the work was somewhat enlarged. The enlargement
consisted in the expansion of the work of several divisions already con¬
stituted and in the establishment of two new divisions, the Florida and
the New Jersey.

The land of Florida is reduced by erosion very nearly to the level of
the sea. Its streams lie but little below the general level of the land,
and their low banks afford no great geologic sections in which the stu¬
dent may readily read the rock structure. The dip of the strata is low
and opportunities for its direct measurement are rare. The land is
largely mantled by deposits of sand, which conceal the rocky skeleton
from dew. By reason of these peculiarities the study of Floridian
geology is difficult and the ordinary stratigraphic methods of work are
inapplicable. It has been necessary to begin by collecting fossils at
numerous points and determining through these the general distribution
of formations differing in age. This preliminary work has been accom¬
plished chiefly by paleontologists, and Mr. W. H. Dali, who has con-

GILBERT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

tributed largely to it, lias recently collated and systematically arranged
all existing knowledge in a memoir soon to be published. This memoir,
classifying the known formations of the State and giving their general
distribution, affords to the geologic surveyor the preliminary data neces¬
sary for the mapping of their boundaries and makes the present time
opportune for the institution of systematic areal work. The propriety
of selecting Florida as the field of work for a new division was further
indicated by the rapid development of its resources in mineral phos¬
phates, the exploitation of which has within two years become a leading
industry of the State. In the organization of the corps for this work
Mr. George H. Eldridge, previously a member of the Colorado Division,
was placed in charge, and Mr. Lawrence C. Johnson, heretofore a mem¬
ber of the Potomac Division, was named as his principal assistant.

Work in New Jersey was initiated in cooperation with the State sur¬
vey. The State has for many years maintained a geological survey and
the general facts of its geology are well known. Through the coopera¬
tion of the State survey with the U. S. Geological Survey a topographic
map of the entire State has been completed. Upon this base it is pro¬
posed to map in detail all the formations of the State, and it has been
arranged that this work, like the topographic work, shall be carried on
in cooperation by the two organizations. Initially attention is directed
chiefly to two classes of rocks — the superficial deposits, which rest upon
all other formations and constitute a large portion of the surface of the
State, and the crystalline schists, which contain the ores of iron and
zinc, and occupy a compact area in the northwestern part of the State.

The State survey undertakes the mapping of the superficial forma¬
tions, the national survey undertakes the mapping of the crystalline
schists and associated Paleozoic formations, and the results of the two
works will be made to contribute at the same time to the geologic atlas
of the State and to the geologic atlas of the United States. In the or¬
ganization of the corps for the work by the U. S. Geological Survey,
Prof. Raphael Pumpelly, geologist in charge of the Archean Division,
was given general supervision, and immediate charge was assigned to
Prof. J. E. Wolff.

WORK OF THE GEOLOGIC DIVISIONS.

The Atlantic Coast Division, under Prof. N. S. Shaler, has been chiefly
occupied in the field revision of the the surface geology of Massachusetts
and in the office preparation of the resulting atlas sheets and explana¬
tory texts. The outline plan for the publication of the sheets of the
geologic atlas of the United States set forth in the Eleventh Annual
Report of the Director requires for its practical application that it shall
be elaborated with respect to details, and this elaboration was under¬
taken in a practical way by carefully preparing for publication a series
of atlas sheets representing the work of various divisions and geologic
phenomena of diverse kinds. To this experimental work Prof. Shaler

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

lias contributed largely, and tbe revision and amendments it lias en¬
tailed have diminished the output of his division below his expectation.
He has, however, reported, in form believed to be final, twenty-two sheets,
exhibiting the surface geology of portions of Massachusetts. He has
likewise prepared a popular treatise on soils, which appears as one of the
accompanying papers of this volume.

The work of the Archeau Division, under the direction of Prof. Ra¬
phael Pumpelly, consists in the mapping of the metamorphic and crys¬
talline rocks of a district comprised chiefly in New England. The dis¬
crimination, tracing, and especially the correlation of these rocks are
matters of great difficulty, and have been the occasion in the past of un¬
certainty and controversy. The general problem was attacked in a dis¬
trict in western Massachusetts believed to be peculiarly favorable for its
solution, and after some years of patient and laborious investigation the
structure of that district was unraveled. Subsequent work has con¬
sisted largely in extending to contiguous areas the knowledge thus
gained, and upon one atlas sheet after another the formations have been
delineated. An independent investigation instituted in central Massa¬
chusetts by Prof. B. K. Emerson led to allied conclusions, and the two
works were brought into entire harmony by the cooperation of the in¬
vestigators. During the year the map area has been extended eastward
in Massachusetts, westward for a short distance into the State of New
York, and northward in southwestern and central Vermont.

The New Jersey Division, likewise in charge of Prof. Pumpelly, was
established in January, and first attention was given to the collation of
the literature embodying results of earlier labors. A corps of assistants
was organized and reconnaissances were made as early as practicable in
the spring. In the latter part of May systematic field work was begun
by several parties and this is still in progress.

The Potomac Division, in charge of Mr. W. J. McGee, was originally
instituted for the investigation of the formations constituting the coastal
plain in the vicinity of the Potomac River. When these formations had
‘been locally classified it was found advantageous to trace them coast¬
wise in both directions, and the work of the division has thus been ex¬
tended far beyond its original field. This year formations differentiated
on the Potomac have been correlated by continuity of physical charac¬
ters with formations previously recognized and described in the Missis¬
sippi Valley. In the main the final delineation of these formations upon
maps is impracticable, because they traverse regions to which the topo¬
graphic work of the Survey has not been carried, but they are being
platted on general maps of small scale; and about the borders of Ches¬
apeake Bay and its affluents detailed areal work is in progress.

This year, as last, the chief work of the Appalachian Division, under
Mr. Bailey Willis, has consisted in areal geology. It has continued the
mapping of the geologic formations on sheets of the atlas in northwest¬
ern Georgia, eastern Tennessee, southwestern Virginia, and eastern

GILBERT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

West Virginia. Important conclusions as to geologic structure, flowing
from the work in Georgia and Alabama, and also from that in the vicin¬
ity of Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia, have been published, and progress
has been made in the elucidation of the structure of Chilhowee Moun¬
tain and vicinity, a district of exceptional interest as well as complexity.

The Florida Division was organized in January, with Mr. George H.
Eldridge in charge, and field work was immediately commenced. At¬
tention was first directed to the geologic relations of the phosphatic
deposits, and the mapping of the formation from which they are pri¬
marily derived was then undertaken. Mr. Eldridge also made a general
reconnaissance of the peninsula as a means of determining the nature
of the problems to be attacked and the best methods of planning the
work. Late in the spring all but one of the field parties were withdrawn
and office study was begun in Washington.

The work of the Lake Superior Division, in charge of Prof. C. R. Van
Rise, is upon the metamorphic and crystalline rocks of the vicinity of
Lake Superior. Owing to the inherent difficulty of classifying these
rocks, and to the fact that the region they underlie is chiefly covered by
dense forest, the division lias heretofore given principal attention to
localities and districts which promise to aid the work of classification.
The areal work accomplished has in chief part been either of somewhat
general nature, warranting publication only on a scale smaller than that
of the geologic atlas, or else closely associated with mining development,
and thus restricted to small areas demanding for publication a scale
larger than that of the geologic atlas. For these reasons, and also
because the topographic work of the Survey has not made great progress
in this district, the systematic areal survey of the geolQgy has but
recently been begun. For the last two years, however, it has been
actively prosecuted. This year its field has been in the Marquette iron
district and in the country lying between that and the Penokee mining
district. Progress is necessarily slower than in regions where observa¬
tion is not impeded by the forest, or where geologic structure is indi¬
cated by sympathetic topographic forms; but the great mineral wealth
associated with these formations justifies the thorough determination of
their distribution.

A large part of the work of the Division of Glacial Geology, under the
direction of Dr. T. C. Chamberlin, has consisted in the correlation and
mapping of the moraines marking the temporary positions of the great
northern ice sheet at various stages of its advance and retreat, and
they so grade one into another that their discrimination would be diffi¬
cult if they were platted only on the large scale atlas sheets of the Sur¬
vey. It is therefore considered advantageous to do this work in advance
of the more detailed map work, and perform it in a comprehensive way
for a large area without reference to the progress of the topographic
survey. The data are platted on maps of relatively small scale. The
division has otherwise been engaged in general studies designed to aid
in the classification of Pleistocene formations.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

The investigation of the zinc deposits of south western Missouri was
continued by Dr. W. P. Jenney. A season of field work having been
completed, the collections of ores and rock were brought to Washing¬
ton, and several months were devoted to office study. As a result of
his investigations in field and office Dr. Jenney was led to entertain a
theory as to the origin of the deposits and their laws of distribution
differing in important respects from those previously advanced. The
bearing of his preliminary conclusion on the conduct of mining opera¬
tions is of such importance that it was deemed proper to compare it in
the most thorough manner with the accessible phenomena before pub¬
lishing a report, and additional field work was planned to this end. He
returned to Missouri in January, and has continued the field study of
the mining district since that time, except that an excursion was made
to western Arkansas for the purpose of examining deposits of argentif¬
erous lead and zinc believed to belong to the same structural belt as
the deposits of southwestern Missouri, and, therefore, to be competent to
afford accessory data bearing on the origin of the Missouri deposits.

In Montana Dr. A. C. Peale has continued the mapping of the geologic
formations of the district covered by the Three Forks atlas sheet. The
area of that district is about 4,000 square miles, of which 3,000 had been
previously mapped. It was hoped that the work would be completed
during the field season of 1890, but this was prevented by inclement
weather, and it was found necessary to leave a small area, as well as
the revision of certain portions whose structure was not fully under¬
stood, until the present summer. Dr. Peale is now in the field, and has
been joined by Prof. Van Hise, of the Lake Superior Division, who makes
a joint excursion with him for the purpose of examining a group of strata
supposed to be of Algonkian age.

The survey of the Yellowstone National Park, under Mr. Arnold Hague,
being practically complete, the field work of his corps lias been carried
to the adjacent district represented on the Livingston atlas sheet. This
district lies immediately north of the Park and adjoins the Three Forks
sheet on the east. The greater part of it was surveyed in the season of
1890, and the work is to be finished this year. A short time has also
been given to supplementary work within the Park, especially on the
Pleistocene formations. Mr. Hague himself did not take the field, but
has remained in Washington for the purpose of completing his report
on an earlier work, the investigation of the geology of the Eureka dis¬
trict of Nevada. The results of the survey of the Yellowstone National
Park have been partially presented at various times in reports upon
special subjects, and a general report is in preparation.

The work of the Colorado Division, under Mr. S. F. Emmons, relates
chiefly to mining geology. There has been little field work during the
year, as a large amount of matter is in preparation for publication, and
it was deemed best to devote the energies of the division to this, rather
than initiate new researches in the field. A small amount of field

GILBERT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

revision was found necessary, and in the Leadville mining district a
supplementary investigation was inaugurated. This district was geo¬
logically surveyed ten years ago and a full report lias been published;
but since field work was completed, many miles of tunnel have been dug,
exposing the rock to examination. It has seemed best to base a sup¬
plementary report on the new material thus made available, and to this
end its collection has been undertaken. Mr. Emmons spent several
weeks in an examination of the various galleries and the compilation of
mine maps has been commenced.

The work of the Cascade Division, under Mr. J. S. Diller, is areal
geology, and its field of operation is in northern California and adjacent
portions of Oregon. This field, like the field of the California Division
south of it, includes large tracts of metamorpliic rocks, the members of
which have never been fully discriminated and referred to their proper
places in the chronologic scale. It includes also lake beds of several
series, the age of which has been somewhat in doubt by reason of the
failure to discover organic remains of diagnostic value. During the year
several efforts have been made to obtain the paleontologic data neces¬
sary for the discrimination of these various formations, aud in these
efforts, which have in the main been successful, the division has been
greatly aided by members of the paleontologic branch of the survey.

The Petrographic Laboratory, also in charge of Mr. Diller, has con¬
tinued the examination of rocks and minerals submitted to it by various
divisions of the Survey, the preparation of thin sections of rock for
microscopic study by the petrographers of the Survey, and the prepara¬
tion of the educational series of rock specimens. The last mentioned
task, which has proved greater than was originally estimated, is now
nearly done, and the, suites of rocks with accompanying text will soon be
ready for distribution.

The California Di vision, under Dr. G-. F. Becker, has continued the
investigation of the gold belt of California, giving chief attention to the
mapping of the formations. Field work has been carried on within the
areas of seven different atlas sheets, and five of these are approximately
finished. Dr. Becker’s personal attention was given largely to the dy¬
namic history of the Sierra Nevada and to problems of correlation on
whose solution depends the nomenclature to be employed in publishing
the atlas sheets.

Such is the variety of nature that no two districts afford precisely the
same problems, and where the problems of two districts are closely allied
the data for their solution differ. Generalizations that are easy and
manifest in one region may be reached only with great difficulty, or not
at all, in another. It is therefore important that the facts of many dis¬
tricts be assembled under one view, so that the generalizations flowing
from the whole may be applied to the elucidation of the obscurer prob¬
lems of each. Many of the researches conducted by the Survey are so
broad that it is practically impossible for one individual to become per-

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

sonally familiar with the whole range of phenomena, and the coopera¬
tion of the different investigators thus becomes of the highest importance.
In the early years of the Survey such cooperation was mainly effected in
the office, but occasional resort was had to joint field excursions. Of
late years the advantage of field cooperation has been more distinctly ap¬
preciated, and, so far as practicable, arrangements are made under which
each investigator, before finally submitting his results for publication,
visits the district or districts where cognate work is in progress, and
under the guidance of his colleagues personally examines the features
having the most important bearing on his work.

At the beginning of the fiscal year Messrs. Van Hise, Pumpelly, and
G. H. Williams, with Mr. 0. D. Walcott, of the paleontologic branch,
were engaged in a joint excursion through districts, in New Jersey, New
York, Massachusetts, and Vermont, exhibiting metamorphic rocks of
Paleozoic, Algonkian, and Archean age. In New Jersey they were ac¬
companied also by Dr. F. L. Nason, of the State Geological Survey.
More recently Messrs. Pumpelly, Van Hise, and Willis, together with
Prof. J. A. Holmes, State geologist of North Carolina, examined in
company a district of crystalline and Paleozoic formations in western
North Carolina and adjacent portions of Tennessee. In northern Cali¬
fornia Mr. Diller, of the Cascade Division, and Prof. Hyatt, of the pale-
outologic branch, studied together the stratigraphy and paleontology of
Mesozoic rocks; and subsequently Mr. Diller accompanied Mr. Dali, of
the paleontologic branch, in a search for fossils in Tertiary lake beds. In
Montana Dr. Peale, of the Montana Division, engaged in mapping the
Three Forks district, and Mr. Weed, of the Yellowstone Park Division,
engaged in mapping the contiguous Livingston district, studied together
a representative section of Paleozoic formations for the purpose of uni¬
fying their work. Mr. McGee, of the Potomac Division, and Mr. El-
dridge, of the Florida Division, examined together in South Carolina,
Georgia, and Florida a series of localities exhibiting formations common
to their fields of research. Last autumn Mr. Johnson, then a member
of the Potomac Division, made an excursion in conjuncture with Prof.
Smith and Mr. Langdon, of the Alabama State Survey, and Prof. Spen¬
cer, of the Georgia State Survey, for the purpose of examining the
formations exhibited along the Chattahoochee and Apalachicola Rivers.

SPECIAL AND TEMPORARY INVESTIGATIONS.

From time to time the Survey has undertaken researches so limited in
scope and extent that it has not seemed advisable to organize separate
divisions for their conduct. Such of them as are closely related to the
work of existing divisions are assigned to those divisions for supervision,
while others less easy of classification have been assigned, for adminis¬
trative convenience, to the Division of Geologic Correlation. That di¬
vision, which is in other respects somewhat anomalous, still remains in
my personal charge, and as its work is not elsewhere treated in this vol-

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

GILBERT.]

nine its doings will be described here more fully than have been those
of the other divisions.

Work in Alaska. — The geologic survey of Alaska has not been under¬
taken, but the Survey has availed itself from time to time of opportuni¬
ties for exploration and local study when through cooperation with
other institutions it could be carried on at small expense. As described
in my last report, Mr. I. C. Russell visited the Yukon Valley in 1889 as
an attache of a party sent out by the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey.
In 1890 he headed an expedition to the vicinity of Mount St. Elias under
the joint auspices of the National Geographic Society and the Geolog¬
ical Survey; this year he continues work in the same district under the
same auspices. This year also Dr. C. W. Hayes accompanies an ex¬
ploring party privately fitted out under the direction of Mr. Frederick
Schwatka.

' In the expedition of 1890 Mr. Russell was assisted by Mr. Mark B.
Kerr, topographer, detailed for that purpose from the Geological Sur¬
vey, and by seven camp men, with Mr. J. H. Christie as foreman. Mr.
E. S. Hosmer accompanied the party to its first camp as volunteer as¬
sistant and then returned on account of sickness. Men were hired and
supplies purchased at Seattle, Washington, and the party was landed
at Yakutat Bay by the U. S. S. Pinta , detailed for that purpose through
the courtesy of the Secretary of the Navy. Through the courtesy of
the Secretary of the Treasury it was enabled to leave Yakutat Bay on
board the U. S. revenue cutter Corwin , Capt. C. L. Hooper, on the 25th
of September. The intervening period of eighty-nine days was spent in
the exploration of a district extending from Disenchantment Bay at the
east to Mount St. Elias at the west and lying from 10 to 20 miles inland.
The general character of the work is set forth in the following passage
extracted from a report presented by Mr. Russell soon after his return :

En route to Sitka we called at Victoria and Port Townsend, visited Taku Inlet and
Glacier Bay, and reached Sitka on the 24th. On the afternoon of the same day we
went on hoard the Pinta under command of Captain Farenholt, who had previously
received instructions from the Secretary of the hJavy to take us to Yakutat Bay.
We sailed from Sitka the following morning and reached Yakutat on the afternoon
of the 26tli.

On the 27th I purchased a canoe and hired others to take us up the hay. The day
following we started, with two of the Pinta'’ s boats to assist us, and made our first
camp on the east side of the hay about 12 miles from its mouth and near the north
end of Knight Island. The Pinta’ s boats then returned and the following day we
advanced a portion of our camp outfit about 12 miles farther. On the third day after
leaving the Pinta we reached the actual base of operations on the west shore of
Yakutat Bay not far from its head.

At our first camp Mr. Hosmer decided to turn hack, as his uncertain health did
not warrant the risks involved in camp life. He returned to Yakutat Mission in a
canoe with an Indian, and a few days later sailed for Sitka in a small trading
schooner. He reached his home safely.

From our camp, on the west shore of Yakutat Bay, I made excursions to the neigh¬
boring glaciers and the lower mountains near at hand, and also up the bay to Grand
View Island. From this island we had a magnificent view of the mountains and

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

glaciers about the head of the bay. Two of the glaciers come down to deep water
and break off in immense cliffs of ice, thus furnishing the ice debris which obstructs
all the upper portion of the inlet. One of the glaciers which enters the bay to the
west of Grand View Island we named after Mr. Dalton, the pioneer explorer of the
upper portion of the bay, and the second one of larger size, which comes down at the
immediate head of the inlet, was named in honor of the president of the Geographic
Society. So far as yet kuown, this is the largest and by far the most magnificent
glacier in Alaska which comes down to the ocean and gives origin to bergs.

While at our shore camp, Mr. Kerr measured a base line and began a topographic
survey. This survey was carried westward throughout the season. The heights of
some of the lower stations occupied were measured by means of a mercurial barome¬
ter, a base barometer being read by Rev. Carl J. Heudricksen at Yakutat Mission.
In this way a vertical base-line was established to be used in the determination of
mountain heights.

After making such observations as seemed desirable from our camp on the shore,
we began a lineof march inland towards Mount St. Elias. At first we traveled along
the base of the mountain, camping on the rocky spurs which project into the great
glacier that intervenes between the mountains and the sea. About the 1st of August
we were approximately midway between Yakutat and St. Elias, at a place we named
Blossom Island. At that point an island of rock, a mile or so in diameter, rises
above the encircling glaciers, and is covered with most luxuriant vegetation. We
there established a base camp, and Mr. Kerr, and myself, with two camp hands,
started up the Marvine glacier, which skirts Blossom Island on the west. The camp
hands who did not accompany us were busy during our absence in advancing rations
from the caches made on the march from Yakutat Bay to Blossom Island, and in for¬
warding necessary supplies to a rendezvous above snow line, from which we obtained
the necessary provisions during our stay in the mountains.

On going up Marvine glacier wo took the most westerly of its main branches, and
found a pass, named Pinnacle Pass, leading westward across the Hitchcock range
to the Lucia glacier, which skirts that range on the west. The Hitchcock range is
the most westerly spur of Mount Cook. The Lucia glacier rises to the north of
Mount Cook, and flows to the southwest and finally to the south. Crossing this
glacier we found another opening in the mountains, which we called Dome Pass,
leading in the direction which we wished to travel. This took us to another south¬
ward flowing glacier, called the Conrad glacier, the most westerly branch of which
derives its snow supply from the northeastern slope of Mount St. Elias. We ascended
this branch to the immediate base of the pyramid forming the summit of St. Elias
and reached an elevation of 8,700 feet, but were turned back by a heavy snowstorm
before reaching the divide north of the peak, which would command a view to the
north of the main range. We made another attempt two days later, but did not
gain as great an elevation as at the first trial. After returning from the second at¬
tempt, I made an effort to ascend the Lucia glacier, which promises to lead to a pass
by means of which the northern slope of the St. Elias range may be gained. During
this trip I was delayed by stormy weather, and finally turned back by a heavy snow¬
storm which rendered traveling almost impossible. From an elevation of about
5,000 feet on the north side of Mount Cook, I had an unobstructed view of the great
drainage basin of the Lucia glacier, and of the many high peaks bordering it on the
north. This route furnishes a way for exploring a large part of the interior, and
would, 1 have little doubt, lead to the country draining northward from the St. Elias
range.

On returning from the excursion up the Lucia glacier I descended to Blossom Is¬
land, where I rejoined Mr. Kerr, who had reached there a few days previously. My
stay above the snow line was from August 2 to September 6.

From Blossom Island I crossed Marvine glacier and reached the extreme southern
end of the Hitchcock range. From there I made an excursion due south about 5

GILBERT. ]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

miles onto the great Malaspiua glacier. In the mean time Mr. Kerr returned to Ya-
kutat Bay, with the intention of occupying a station on its eastern shore that would
command Disenchantment Bay, which extends easterly from the head of the main
inlet. This plan was not carried out, however, owing partly to stormy weather,
and Mr. Kerr proceeded to Yakutat Mission, where he occupied a station formerly
used by the U. S. Coast Survey. This enabled him to repeat the measurements made
some years ago by Dali and Baker and to identify Mount St. Elias, Mount Cook, and
Mount Vancouver.

On returning to Blossom Island from my trip to the Piedmont glacier I started at
once for Yakutat Bay, where I arrived about September 20. On the 22d the steamer
Corwin, in command of Capt. C. L. Hooper, arrived and took us on board. The Cor¬
win then steamed up the bay, passing Grand View Island, to the mouth of Disen¬
chantment Bay. This enabled us to see considerable country not previously exam¬
ined, but did not furnish an opportunity for work on shore. Soundings were made
at various intervals up to within a mile of the foot of Hubbard glacier, and gave a
depth of from 40 to 60 fathoms. The Corwin returned to Yakutat Mission the same
day, sailed from there on the 25th, and reached Port Townshend, Wash., on Oc¬
tober 2. From there I returned to Washington, D. C.

Mr. Russell’s report to the National Geographic Society has been
printed, constituting pages 53 to 204 of the third volume of the National
Geographic Magazine.

In the study of the glacial drift of the northeastern States a leading
difficulty has depended on the fact that no glacier of the same type is
known to exist at the present time, so that some of the processes theoret¬
ically characteristic of the Pleistocene ice sheet have not been directly
observed in the study of living glaciers. One of the glaciers described
by Mr. Russell, the Malaspiua, differs from other known glaciers in
such ways as to suggest that it is homologous with some portions of the
Pleistocene ice sheet and great interest, therefore, attaches to all of its
features. It was, therefore, desirable that Mr. Russell return and
undertake its systematic survey. The Survey availed itself of the facil¬
ities afforded through the continued interest of the National Geographic
Society and the courtesy of the Treasury Department, and made
arrangements for another expedition. Mr. Russell once more outfitted at
Seattle, engaging six cam}) hands, with Mr. Christie again as foreman,
and set sail on May 30, on board the United States revenue cutter
Bear , Capt. M. A. Healey. No topographer was attached to this party,
it being understood that the Superintendent of the U. S. Coast and
Geodetic Survey in connection with work on the Alaskan boundary
will probably send a topographic party to the vicinity of Mount St.
Elias this summer, and that such party, if sent, will cooperate with
Mr. Russell. Advices from Capt. Healey recently received, say that the
party was landed through the surf at Icy Bay, near the foot of Mount
St. Elias, on June C, and was thus enabled to begin its field work
twenty-two days earlier than last year. Otherwise its auspices were
less favorable, for the landing of the party was accompanied by a
lamentable accident. Through the upsetting of a boat in the surf,
Lieut. L. L. Robiuson, of the Bear , Mr. W. C. Moore, of the surveying
party, and four seamen were drowned.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Mr. Frederick Scliwatka undertakes this year to enter the Yukon
Valley from the south, via the Taku Fiver, a route heretofore followed
by miners but not surveyed; to descend the Yukon Fiver by boats to
the vicinity of the mouth of the White, and thence to strike southwest-
ward to a branch of the Copper Fiver, traversing on foot for a distance
of about three hundred miles, a region now blank upon the map. He
applied to the Geological Survey for a scientific assistant to make obser¬
vations on the topography, geology, natural history, and ethnography of
the route, and, his application being viewed with favor, Dr. C. W.
Hayes, of the Appalachian Division of Geology, was at his own desire
detailed as such assistant. Dr. Hayes’s latest received report was
written at Juneau, Alaska, May 23, and stated that the party would
start inland the following day.

Work in western Tennessee. — Last year Prof. J. M. Salford, of Nasli-
ville, Tennessee, undertook the detailed examination of a district in
Stewart County, known to geologists as the Wells Creek basin, and dis¬
tinguished by the fact that low-lying strata elsewhere in that region
covered by later formations are there uplifted so as to outcrop at the
surface. During the fiscal year Prof. Salford has been able to give
several months’ time to the continuation of field work, and has been
assisted by Prof. J. M. Hopkins, and Messrs. W. P. Lander and P. M.
Jones. Important collections of fossils have been made, and the mapping
of the formations is nearly accomplished. It is proposed to complete
the field work in the course of a few weeks, and prepare a report as
soon afterward as Prof. Salford’s other duties will permit.

Work in Connecticut. — The rocks of the State of Connecticut are largely
crystalline and metamorphic, but a belt traversing the central part from
north to south is occupied by unaltered strata belonging to the Newark
system, and with these are associated extensive sheets and dikes of vol¬
canic rock. The general study, and especially the detailed mapping of
the rocks of this central belt, were undertaken by Prof. W. M. Davis
last year, and the work has been continued as his other duties have
permitted during the present fiscal year. He has been assisted for
limited periods by Dr. E. O. Hovey, Messrs. J. A. Merrill, H. L. Pich,
and S. W. Loper and Prof. W. N. Pice, and the work is making satis¬
factory progress.

Stratigraphic work in Missouri. — In cooperation with the State survey
of Missouri the determination and measurement of the Upper Paleozoic
formations of the southwestern portion of the State was undertaken last
year, the field work being by Mr. Gilbert van Ingen. During the first
ten weeks of the fiscal year he continued his work in Green, Henry, St.
Clair, Bates, Newton, and Jasper Counties, measuring and describing the
various beds and making large collections of fossils. At the end of that
period his work was interrupted by a serious illness from which he has
but recently recovered. The study of the fossils and the classification
ot the formations have been intrusted to Prof. H. S. Williams.

GILBERT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

Underground temperatures. — The city of Wheeling, West Virginia,
stands on horizontal strata of Carboniferous age. The drill has thus far
failed to discover beneath it valuable accumulations of natural gas, pe¬
troleum, or brine. In order to test thoroughly the question of their
occurrence a number of citizens organized as the Wheeling Development
Company, with Mr. X. B. Scott as president, and bored a well to the depth
of 4,100 feet. It passed beyond the Carboniferous series of strata and
penetrated far into shales of Devonian age. The substances sought
were not found, but the well proves of value in other ways. It gives
information as to the thickness of certain formations in a region where
they had not been previously measured; and it affords one of the best
opportunities ever known — probably the very best opportunity — for the
measurement of a temperature gradient of the earth’s crust. These con¬
siderations having been presented to them by Prof. I. C. White, of Mor¬
gantown, the company determined to increase the depth of the well in
the interest of science. Boring was resumed and continued to a depth
of 4,471 feet, and the well was then placed at the service of the U. S.
Geological Survey, which undertook the determination of temperature
gradients.

The peculiarities which render the well specially available for ten li tera¬
ture observations are these: (1) The well is dry. Veins of water were
encountered in the upper third of the well, but these have been cut off
by iron casings; from the bottom of the casing at 1,570 feet to the bot¬
tom of the well, an interval of 2,900 feet, no water enters. As there is
no circulation of water through the rock in this interval, we may assume
with confidence that the flow of heat through the rock is by conduction
only instead of being partly by conduction and partly by convection, as
is usually the case. As there is no water in the well, but air only, the
well itself does not produce a redistribution of heat along its walls. The
efficient convection which would be set up if the well were filled with
water does not exist in the slender column of air. The normal tempera¬
ture of the walls of the well is maintained and can be measured. (2) The
strata in the immediate vicinity lie horizontal, having essentially the
attitude of deposition and being unaffected by the folds of the Appa¬
lachian mountain system. We may therefore assume with confidence
that the temperatures and temperature gradients observed are unaffected
by the heat resulting from rock crushing or other dynamic agencies.

The actual observation of temperatures was intrusted by the Director
to Dr. William Hallock, of the Division of Chemistry and Physics, and
in the elaboration of the plans for the work he was aided by Mr. F. H.
Newell, of the topographic branch. A preliminary series of observations
were made in May, and Dr. Hallock returned to the work with new and
improved apparatus early in June.

Division of Geologic Correlation. — The work of this division consists
in the assembling of existing knowledge with reference to American
formations belonging to the different geologic periods, the discussion of

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

their correlation with one another and with the formations of other
countries, and the development of the principles of geologic correlation.
The division is constituted chiefly of geologists and paleontologists be¬
longing to other divisions of the Survey, who are selected by reason of
their previous familiarity with the formations and faunas of the partic¬
ular periods. The greater part of its work is now accomplished. Of
the twelve essays originally planned as the outcome of its labors, five
have been completed and two are in advanced preparation.

Prof. Henry S. Williams, of Ithaca, New York, who undertook the
study of the formations of the Carboniferous and Devonian, had fin¬
ished his work, with the exception of a portion of the writing, in pre¬
vious years. His report is now in press. His general treatment of the
subject is historical, but he classifies it also by problems, taking up one
after another the questions of classification and correlation which have
occupied the attention of American geologists, giving the history of
each discussion or controversy, and showing how in its progress various
principles of correlation were appealed to, recognized, or developed.

Mr. C. D. Walcott has completed his historical study of the forma¬
tions of the Cambrian, and his report also is now in press. As a result
of his work, he classifies the Cambrian formations under three chrono¬
logic divisions characterized by distinct faunas, and he deduces a tenta¬
tive history of the continental changes of Cambrian time. That history
is further set forth in an essay which accompanies the present volume.

Dr. Charles A. White, to whom was assigned the discussion of the
formations of the Cretaceous, likewise completed his report, and it is in
the hands of the printer ready to be taken up. Comparing the Creta¬
ceous formations of one district with those of another in serial order, he
develops in an impressive way the difficulty of the problem of correla¬
tion as dependent upon the natural complexity of the phenomena.

Dr. W. B. Clark, of Johns Hopkins University, who has been similarly
engaged on the formations of the Eocene, has completed his work and
the manuscript awaits publication. His summary is based chiefly upon
the literature, and he does not venture personal opinions as to correla¬
tion from province to province.

The report on the formations of the Neocene, prepared by Dr. W. H.
Dali, is likewise ready for press. Besides assembling and digesting the
literature of the subject, it makes important original contributions based
on the author’s personal observations. The body of new material with
reference to Florida was of such magnitude that it seemed best to ex¬
ceed the original scope of the work by giving a complete summary of
the known geology of that State. For similar reasons the Chapter on
Alaska was made to include all known data as to its Cenozoic geology.
Much of the labor of compilation was performed by Mr. Gilbert D.
Harris, and the importance of his contribution has been recognized by
giving place to his name on the title page as junior author.

The discussion of the pre-Cambrian formations was assigned to Prof.

GILBERT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

C. R. Van Hise, who has prepared himself therefor not only by thorough
study of the literature but by personal examinations of the more impor¬
tant classic localities. A portion of the field work was performed dur¬
ing the current year, but his time has been occupied principally with
office study and the preparation of manuscript. His memoir is now
nearly complete and will probably be submitted in a few weeks.

Mr. I. 0. Russell, to whom was intrusted the discussion of the New¬
ark system, completed the manuscript in first draft before resuming
field duty in Alaska, but it will not be practicable to give it final form
until his return in the autumn. His discussion will differ from that of
all the others in that no question as to superior and inferior limits of the
group of strata is involved. This system is a peculiarly definite physi¬
cal unit, and in all discussions of correlation is necessarily considered
in its entirety.

Dr. T. C. Chamberlin, who accepted the duty of discussing the classi¬
fication and correlation of the Pleistocene formations, being fully occu¬
pied by other matters, has not yet found time to prepare an essay.

In my last report it was announced that Prof. Ward’s essay on cor¬
relation by means of fossil plants would be abbreviated by restricting
the discussion to the flora of the Jura- Trias and the principles of cor¬
relation. This change was arranged with the expectation that the essay
could thus be brought out in immediate connection with the others
of the series, but as that has proved impracticable, it now seems best
to revert to the original plan. Accordingly, Prof. Ward will discuss
systematically all American fossil floras, basing his work not only
on the literature but on the fossils themselves, and his memoir will
not appear for several years. As preparation tor this work was organ¬
ized in his division before the institution of the Correlation Division,
and as the work will be brought to completion some time after the pub¬
lication of the other correlation essays, it does not seem advantageous
to modify his original plan in any way for the purpose of bringing it
into harmony with the general plans of the division.

For a number of years Mr. W. J. McGee has had in preparation a
thesaurus of American formations, designed to afford a complete cata¬
logue of American formation names, together with bibliographic refer¬
ences to their original definitions and all subsequent redefinitions. The
preparation of the correlation essays promised to bring together so large
a body of material directly available for incorporation in this thesaurus
that work upon the latter was suspended. It will now be resumed and
the thesaurus will be published as one of the closing papers of the series.

Herewith are submitted also the administrative reports of the several
chiefs of the Geologic Divisions.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

12 GEOL - 5

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

REPORT OF PROF. N. S. SHALER.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Atlantic Coast Division,
Cambridge, Mass., June 30, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit the following report concerning the
administration of my division during the fiscal year 1890-’91.

The work allotted to this division by the Director includes the follow¬
ing matters : An examination into the history of the Atlantic Coast line;
an inquiry into the inundated lands of the United States, a group of
areas which in the main lie near this shore; the detailed survey of the
Narragansett coal field; and the surface geology of the New England
States. In accordance with your instructions the last named task has
occupied the time of the members of the division during the last year.
The work done on the other subjects of inquiry was entirely in the prep¬
aration of certain office material, the field work upon them for the pres¬
ent having been put aside.

During the field season beginning June 1, 1890, the aim was to map
the surface deposits of the areas delineated by the maps of the New
England surveys made during the previous year. In accordance with
this plan the several parties were provided with photographic copies of
those plane table sheets. While collecting the data necessary for their
geological reports the members of the field parties were required con¬
tinuously to record all errors in the details of this topography which
their criticism revealed. The results of this revision were at once sent
to the office of the geographer in order that they might be so far as
seemed to him desirable embodied in the maps before they went to the
engraver.

The field sheets upon which the surface geology was indicated, and
the topography inspected, were situated in Rhode Island, Connecticut,
Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont, and in all they numbered eighteen.
The following assignments for this field work were made at various times
during the season :

To Mr. R. E. Dodge, assistant geologist, and Mr. M. A. Read, field
assistant, were in succession assigned the sheets on the westernmost
portion of Connecticut and near Portland, Maine; to Mr. J. B. Wood-
worth, sheets in Rhode Island and Connecticut; to Mr. R. S. Tarr,
sheets in southern Vermont; to Mr. J. H. Ropes, sheets in southern
Maine. Mr. L. H. Davis assisted Mr. Dodge for awhile in southern Maine
and was then given independent work on a portion of the area of that
district. Besides the work above indicated Mr. Tarr was for some time
engaged in advancing the work of delineating the surface geology on the
Massachusetts sheets, all of which had already been engraved. Mr. G.
H. Barton was engaged for the field season in observing and delineating

pumpelly.] THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

the clrumlins of Massachusetts, it having been found necessary to have
that task done over the whole field by one observer.

During the winter season the assistants so far as retained in the serv¬
ice have been engaged in collating the results of the work done in the
field. Twenty-two sheets, with the accompanying descriptions, of the
Massachusetts Atlas have been sent to the Washington office and the
remainder of the sheets of that map are in an advanced state of prepa¬
ration. The eighteen sheets prepared during the previous field season
have been properly copied and the records concerning them put in order.
The necessary delays in formulating the precise plan for the publication
of these field sheets has caused delay in transmitting the results to the
office.

The geologist in charge of the division has prepared a report concern¬
ing the geology of the soils of the United States, which is designed to set
forth in a somewhat popular manner the physical history of this element
of the surface geology. This report has been published in the annual
report of the Director for 1890-’91.

In June, 1891, the field work was resumed, gentlemen being engaged
as follows : Messrs. Woodworth and Cobb ou the under geology of the
Narragansett field; Mr. Tarr on the revision of the Worcester, Mass.,
sheet ; Mr. Barton on the drumlins of Massachusetts ; Mr. Davis on the
unfinished sheets of New Hampshire, and Mr. Brewster on the unfin¬
ished sheets in the State of Connecticut.

At the end of the month of June Mr. Tarr was, at his request, trans¬
ferred from the Atlantic Coast Division for service with Dr. Wolff in the
New Jersey Division.

All of which is respectfully submitted.

Your obedient servant,

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

N. S. Shaler,
Geologist in charge.

REPORT OF MR. RAPHAEL PUMPELLY.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Archean Geology,

Dublin , N. H ., July 1, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit my administrative report for the
year ending June 30, 1891.

During the season I made visits with assistant geologists through
their respective areas, and made reconnaissant excursions with refer¬
ence to future work.

The Archean and New Jersey divisions have to deal chiefly with
crystalline rocks, generally of very obscure and doubtful origin. Their
classification and correlation is rendered possible only by applying most

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

recent results of petrographic research of European -American geologists.
To these methods the published and unpublished work of the petrog-
raphers of the U. S. Geological Survey, and of the Archean Division
has contributed greatly.

We are now studying besides those of Central Massachusetts four
areas of crystalline sedimentary elastics and of crystalline schists pro¬
duced by orographic movements acting upon the Archean rocks and
upon the later eruptives. These areas are in Central Vermont, Hoosac
Mountain, and Southern Berkshire County, Massachusetts, and in the
New Jersey Highlands. While having marked individualities, they
have certain persistent features in common.

I found as we attacked the problems of classification and correlation
of the crystalline rocks that there would be need of a comprehensive
comparative, study of their mode of occurrence in different fields. For
this purpose, accompanied by Prof. Van Hise, I made last summer ex¬
cursions to the crystalline area in Missouri, in the Marquette and Me¬
nominee regions on Lake Superior, in the neighborhood of Philadelphia
and Trenton, in the New Jersey and New York Highlands, and in the
Adirondacks; and also, without cost to the survey; an extended and in¬
structive trip among the pre-Cambrian rocks of Canada, west of Lake
Superior. During the winter, accompanied by Mr. C. L. Whittle, I
made a joint excursion with Prof. Van Hise, Mr. Bailey Willis, and Prof.
Holmes, State geologist of North Carolina, across the crystalline rocks
of North Carolina.

This comparative study has already contributed much toward the
classification of our Green Mountain and New Jersey crystalline schists
and also in the direction of correlating the pre-Cambrian rocks of Michi¬
gan and Canada with those of New England.

It is also throwing much light upon the origin of the crystalline schists.

During the last year the field work of the members of the corps was
distributed as follows: Dr. Wolff was employed during the season in
determining the structure of the Vermont Valley, near Rutland, and the
age of its rocks. In the very successful search for fossils, by means of
which the age of the lower limestone was determined as Lower Cam¬
brian, Dr. Wolff was assisted by Mr. Aug. F. Foerste, to whose skill
the first and larger part of the fossil discovery was due. Dr. Wolff
published in the bulletin of the Geological Society a paper on the “Cam¬
brian Age of the Rutland Valley Limestone.” During the winter he was
employed a large part of the time on the petrography of the Green
Mountain rocks and in preparing for work in the New Jersey Division.

Prof. Emerson was employed during the field season, with five assist¬
ants, one of whom was a volunteer, and at such times during the rest
of the year as he could spare from his college duties in office work, and
occasionally in the field.

His assistants were: Messrs. J. H. Perry, C. S. Merrick, Wm. Orr, jr.,
F. A. Hathaway, and Robert Crowell (volunteer). Besides supervising

PUMPELLY.J

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

the work of his assistants, Prof. Emerson devoted his time in the field
mainly to the geology of the Becket atlas sheet, which includes a very
important area of crystalline rocks. He has finished the Northhampton
sheet ready for printing, and has completed the coloring of the surface
geology of nine atlas sheets. Mr. Perry worked on the geology of the
Webster and Blackstone sheets, and Mr. Merrick on that of the Groton
sheets. These, together with the Worcester sheet, are nearly finished
and ready for final coloring. Mr. Orr was occupied in tracing out the
many beds of Silurian limestone on the area covered by the Hawley
sheet, and Mr. Hathaway in completing the geology of the Winchendon
sheet, north of the Massachusetts line.

Prof. Emerson has also worked toward the completion of the text of
his monograph on the geology of Hampden, Franklin, and Hampshire
Counties, and written a paper accompanied by a map on the Trias of
the Connecticut Valley, in Massachusetts.

Mr. William H. Hobbs was employed in the field during July, Au¬
gust, and September in mapping the geology of the larger part of the
Sheffield sheet in Massachusetts. During the winter he devoted such
time to the petrographic study of his materials as could be spared from
his college duties.

Mr. T. Nelson Dale was employed during the field season in mapping
the geology of the Berlin sheet in eastern New York and of the New
York portion of the Pittsfield sheet.

During part of the time he was assisted by Mr. Foerste, whose dis¬
covery of Cambrian fossils in connection with Mr. Dale’s structural work,
settled definitely the ages of the formations covered by these sheets.

During the winter Mr. Dale was occupied with office work on his last
season’s material, and as custodian of property. During the latter half
of May he completed the work on the sheets in eastern New York, and
accompanied Mr. C. D. Walcott over the same area. During the latter
half of June he began field work on the rocks of the Vermont Valley,
taking up the study where Dr. Wolff left off, near Rutland.

Mr. C. L. Whittle was employed during the field season on the geol¬
ogy of the area topographically surveyed in central Vermont. This
area is one presenting many difficulties, and at the same time very im¬
portant, from the fact that it includes both the Lower Cambrian lime¬
stones of the valley, with the equivalent metamorphic conglomerates
and schists, and an unconformably underlying series of pre-Cambrian
schists and limestones, separating the Cambrian from the core of the
Archean complex. During the winter Mr. Whittle was occupied in
studying petrograpliically the rocks of his field. He also accompanied
me on a visit to the crystalline schists of North Carolina. In the latter
part of May he resumed field work in central Vermont.

By a special arrangement with the New Jersey Geological Survey,
the mapping of the geology of the area of crystalline rocks of that State
was undertaken by the U. S. Geological Survey. A special New Jersey

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

division was created and placed under my charge in January of the
present year.

The area to be studied contains roughly about 800 square miles, and
the topographical maps offer an excellent basis for the graphic repre¬
sentation of the geology. Dr. J. E. Wolff, formerly of the Archean Di¬
vision, was detailed as assistant geologist, who, pending the opening of
the season, made repeated excursions to the field, and other prepara¬
tions for the survey. The work was definitely begun at the end of
March, and has continued since through April, May, and June. Of Dr.
Wolff’s three assistants, Mr. J. Gf. Westgate began May 24 in the south¬
ern part of Warren County. Mr. H. J. Richmond began June 11 in the
northern part of Warren County. Mr. R. S. Tarr began June 19 in the
northern highlands of New Jersey.

I have the honor to be, your obedient servant,

Raphael Pumpellyf,

Geologist in Charge.

Mr. Gf. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

REPORT OF MR. W J McGEE.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Potomac Division,
Washington , D. C., June 30 , 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to transmit the following report of operations
in the Potomac Division of Geology during the fiscal year ending to¬
day.

PERSONAL WORK IN THE MISSISSIPPI EMBAYMENT.

At the beginning of the fiscal year I was engaged in a reconnaissance
of the later Cenozoic formations in the Mississippi embayment, extend¬
ing from New Orleans northward to somewhat beyond the mouth of the
Ohio River. This reconnaissance was so ordered as practically to cover
a zone 40 or 50 miles wide between these termini. The lines of recon¬
naissance were occasionally extended considerably farther eastward,
and also westward beyond the Mississippi as far as central Arkansas.
In the southern part of this zone special attention was given to the Co¬
lumbia formation — a littoral and sometimes estuarine deposit recognized
in the middle Atlantic slope some years ago, subsequently traced through
the southern Atlantic and eastern Gulf slopes, and during the recon¬
naissance of the present season clearly discriminated in the Mississippi
embayment, where it is developed in vast volume. Throughout the en¬
tire area traversed especial attention was given to that distinctive and
widespread formation originally discriminated and called the Lafayette
formation by Hilgard, afterward recognized iu Tennessee by Safford and
designated the Orange Sand, and more recently discriminated in this

MCGEE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

division in the middle Atlantic slope and, before the identification of
the widely separated deposits was effected, denominated the Appomattox
formation. Carefnl attention was given also to the mineral contents of
this formation (for which it seems well to restore Hilgard’s original
designation), to topographic configuration, to the extensive invasion of
the region by modern erosion resulting in part from deforesting, to the
characteristics of the soils, etc. Attention was also given to the earlier
Cenozoic and to the Mesozoic formations. The modifications in physi¬
ography, the Assuring of hills, the extravasation of gravels in the val¬
leys, and the other permanent or long enduring effects of the New
Madrid earthquake of 1811-13, were also studied in some detail. The
Lafayette formation was traced northeastward to beyond the Tennessee
River and westward to the Washita, and the Columbia formation was
traced over a wide area. The reconnaissance resulted in the discrimi¬
nation of the Neocene and Pleistocene deposits over a considerable part
of the Mississippi embayment, in correlating several of these formations
with formations already recognized in other parts of the coastal plain,
in ascertaining the significance of the topographic and physiographic
features of the region, and in elucidating the Neocene and Pleistocene
history of a considerable part of the Gulf slope.

The greater part of the journeys were made on horseback. Side and
cross trips were made from time to time by rail, and vehicles were some¬
times used in reaching certain side points not accessible in other ways.

PERSONAL WORK ON THE SOUTHERN ATLANTIC SLOPE.

On the 1st of January an arrangement was effected under your direc¬
tion for transferring the work on structure and on the phosphates of
Florida to another division, in charge of Mr. George H. Eldridge; and in
order to place the results of work in that region by this division more
fully and definitely in Mr. Eldridge’s possession than seemed possible
in any other way, a journey was made in company with that gentleman
through portions of the Carolinas, Georgia, and northern Florida. Dur¬
ing this journey old observations were verified and extended and new
observations were made along several lines in each of the States. Spe¬
cial attention was given to the Columbia and Lafayette formations, and
both were traced some distance beyond the previously known limits.
The relations of the formations between themselves and to the Neocene
and Eocene deposits of southeastern United States were studied and in
some measure ascertained. The structure and composition of both were
investigated, and the changes in structure and composition supervening
on passing from the inland extension of the formation toward the coast
were studied, with the aim of establishing means of correlation between
the littoral and deep-sea deposits, respectively, of the Columbia and La¬
fayette formations. Materials were also collected, and part of these
have been examined chemically. The journey resulted in material ad¬
dition to the knowledge of the distribution of the Columbia, Lafayette, and

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

some other formations in Georgia and Florida, and of the characteristics
of these formations in a part of the Coastal Plain in which they had not
been adequately studied.

PERSONAL WORK ON THE MIDDLE ATLANTIC SLOPE.

In coordinating the studies and investigations of Dr. Williams, Prof.
Holmes, and Mr. Darton, it became necessary to make special held
trips during the year in Virginia and Maryland. One of these was
made in connection with a joint scientific expedition organized by the Geo¬
logical Survey, Johns Hopkins University, and the Agricultural College
of Maryland. This expedition was made in the latter part of May of the
present year. It was suggested by Dr. William B. Clark, of Johns
Hopkins University, and Prof. Milton Whitney, of the Maryland Agri¬
cultural College; and a “board of control” was organized, consisting of
these gentlemen as representatives of the institutions with which they
are connected, and myself on the part of the Geological Survey. Pres¬
ident D. C. Gilman, of Johns Hopkins University, and Maj. H. E. Alvord,
president of the Maryland Agricultural College, accompanied the expe¬
dition during a part of the work. Other participants were Messrs.
George H. Williams, Nelson H. Darton, Gilbert D. Harris, and David
White, on the part of the Geological Survey; Dr. E. Lewis Sturtevant,
recently of the State Agricultural Experiment Station of New York;
Prof. Henry D. Adams, of McGill College, Montreal; Mr. W. H. Holmes,
of the Bureau of Ethnology; Dr. H. M. Hurd, of Johns Hopkins Uni¬
versity, and several advanced pupils of the Agricultural College and
the University. The purpose was a detailed study of the geology and
particularly of the soils and greensand deposits of the “western shore”
of Maryland on Chesapeake Bay and Potomac Biver. For the means
of transportation the participants in the expedition are indebted to the
State board of public works of Maryland, and particularly to Gen. Joseph
E. Seth, commander of the Maryland naval police fieet, by whom the
steamer Governor Roberts was placed at the disposal of the party for
the entire journey, with the accompaniment of a sailing vessel for a part
of the time. The expedition was successful in extending knowledge of
the geology and resources of central Maryland, in coordinating the work
of students of stratigraphy, paleontology, and zoology, and in estab¬
lishing harmony and a measurable division of labor among the three
institutions represented, in such manner as to inure to the benefit of
each.

PERSONAL WORK ON THE PACIFIC COAST.

Toward the close of the fiscal year a hasty journey was made to the
Pacific coast, partly for the purpose of making a comparative study of
the prevailing 'earth forms of that region in connection with those of
eastern United States, with a view to the correlation of later earth-
forming episodes on opposite sides of the continent. Within recent

MCGEE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

years students have come to read geologic history and interpret geo¬
logic chronology from earth forms as well as from deposits; and it was
believed that a comparative study of earth forms on the Atlantic and
Pacific coasts would give indications of the relative antiquity of the
land surface, and thus afford a means of correlating Pleistocene
and possibly Neocene episodes. Although the results of the study are
not final, they are highly significant, and will prove valuable in future
work on the coastal regions of the United States.

While in California I had the pleasure of conferring with Dr. E. W.
Hilgard, formerly State geologist of Mississippi, and also of Louisiana,
concerning many of the puzzling problems of southern geology ; and I am
indebted to him for valuable data, iucludiug many unpublished details
concerning this subject. Moreover, the journey gave opportunity for a
personal conference with Dr. Loughridge (who is now in the University
of California, at Berkeley) concerning his report on the Santee River
section, and also on the deposits of western Kentucky, which were in¬
dependent studied by him under the auspices of the Geological Survey
of Kentucky and by myself during last season.

DR. WILLIAMS’S WORK ON THE PIEDMONT CRYSTALLINES.

The Piedmont area of eastern United States, in which the rocks are
ancient crystallines, is not an essential part of the geologic province
with which this division is primarily concerned; yet, since the Coastal
Plain deposits are structurally related to these crystallines, and since,
moreover, the newer deposits are largely made up of debris derived
from the Piedmont crystallines, there are reasons for combining study
of the two provinces. Accordingly during the fiscal year just closing,
as during preceding years, the researches in the Piedmont region have
been carried forward in the Potomac Division. Dr. George H. Williams,
who has charge of these researches, reports as follows on the work of
the year :

REPORT OF WORK DONE ON THE CRYSTALLINE AND SEMI-CRYSTALLINE ROCKS OF
MARYLAND DURING 1890-91 BY GEORGE H. WILLIAMS.

During tlie fiscal year 1890-91 work has been continued within the Piedmont areas
of Maryland and northern Virginia along the lines indicated in previous reports.

In the fall of 1890 the field investigations were mainly directed to discovering the
true relationship between the crystalline and semi-crystalline rocks of the Piedmont
plateau. To this end the slates on the east of the crystallines in Fairfax and Prince
William Counties, Va., were mapped and studied ; a section was made along Occoquan
Creek — the boundary between these counties — from Manassas to Woodbridge; and
three parallel sections were also made from east to west across the entire crystalline
and semi-crystalline belt of Maryland. The details regarding these sections, to¬
gether with the general conclusions drawn from them and much intermediate work
were communicated to the Geological Society of America at its Washington meeting,
December, 1890, in an illustrated paper entitled, “The Petrography and Structure
of the Piedmont Plateau in Maryland,” which was published by the society. (Bull.
G. S. A., vol. ii, pp. 301-322, March, 1891.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

During the year a large amount of microscopical and other laboratory investigation
was also carried on upon the petrographic material collected in the course of the
above-named field wtfrk, and also upon the collections of crystalline rocks gathered
during the preceding fiscal year in the neighborhood of Washington. The record of
such laboratory work has been systematically kept through a number of years, and
seems already to be pointing to results of general value.

Through the spring of 1891, aside from two long trips for the geological explora¬
tion of southern and western Maryland, many field excursions have been undertaken
for the detailed mapping of the recently completed topographic atlas sheets near
Baltimoi’e and Washington.

Fully realizing the necessity of wider observation than could be made within the
limits of one small State, for success in dealing with the complex problems of Ar-
chean geology, the Director of the Survey authorized the writer to undertake two
extended trips, one toward the north and the other toward the south, within the
extension of the crystalline belt, of which the Piedmont area in Maryland forms a
part. The first of these longer excursions was made in company with Profs. Pum-
pelly and Van Hise during the summer of 1890, and embraced the more crystalline
portions of northern New Jersey, southern New York, western Massachusetts, Ver¬
mont, and the Adirondack Mountains. An informal account of its object and results
was published in the Johns Hopkins University Circular, No. 84, December, 1890.
The second long trip was taken at the instance and with the cooperation of the State
Geological Survey of North Carolina during June, 1891. It embraced the examina¬
tion of several critical points in central Virginia, and a complete east-west section,
some 300 miles in length, of the crystalline belt where it is broadest, viz, from Paint
Rock on the French Broad River at the Tennessee line to Raleigh, North Carolina.
This section was run along the railroad on a hand car, in company with the North
Carolina State Geologist, Prof. J. A. Holmes, and has afforded many important struc¬
tural points, together with a large amount of petrographic material for future study.

Respectfully submitted.

Geo. H. Williams.

July 28, 1891.

DR. SMITH’S WORK IN ALABAMA.

During part of the year Dr. Eugene A. Smith, State geologist of Ala¬
bama, has been employed in special investigations for this division.
The principal line of work was the construction of a section through the
Coastal Plain from the Piedmont region to the Gulf, along the line of
the Chattahoochee and Appalachicola Rivers. In this work Dr. Smith
had the cooperation of Mr. Lawrence C. Johnson, then of this division,
Dr. J. W. Spencer, State Geologist of Georgia, and Daniel W. Langdon,
formerly of the Geological Survey of Alabama. The examination was
made in September, at low stage of the river, in order that the oppor¬
tunities for observation of low-lying exposures might be favorable as pos¬
sible. The study resulted in the development and measurement of a
section giving the succession of deposits and the physical and faunal
characteristics, and in general the thickness of each from Columbus,
Georgia, to the Gulf.

Both before and after this special examination Dr. Smith was em¬
ployed for some time in studies of the Lafayette and associated forma¬
tions in the interior of the State, and in conjunction with Mr. Johnson
in working up the results of field studies in southern Alabama for the

MCGEE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

use of this division. In consequence of Dr. Smith’s valuable assistance
the data concerning the Coastal Plain formations in southern Alabama
are now so full as to permit classification of the deposits in many locali¬
ties, and thus to prepare the way for detailed mapping as soon as topo¬
graphic bases are completed.

MR. JOHNSON’S WORK ON THE GULF SLOPE.

Mr. Lawrence C. Johnson’s connection with this division continued
during the first half of the fiscal year. His field work lay in Louisiana,
Mississippi, and Tennessee in connection with my own reconnaissance,
and in Alabama and in Florida.

During past years Mr. Johnson’s observations extended over con¬
siderable parts of Louisiana and Mississippi, and he was thus able to give
material assistance and guidance in personal work in this region ; and
for this reason he accompanied me on certain journeys. Accordingly
the results of this work are to be credited in part to Mr. Johnson.

In the intervals between his periods of occupation in this manner, Mr.
Johnson was employed in assembling and reducing field observations in
connection with Dr. Smith, at Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He also participated
in the work on the Chattahoochee and Appalachacola Rivers, already
referred to. Subsequently he repaired to Florida, where he resumed the
investigation of the phosphate -deposits. His work here resulted in im¬
portant additions to knowledge concerning the distribution, value, geo¬
logic relations, and genesis of the different classes of phosphate found
in Florida ; and when this study was transferred to another division on
the first of January these results were utilized in a manner otherwise
reported to you.

PROF. HOLMES’S WORK IN THE CAROLINAS.

During a part of the year Prof. Joseph A. Holmes, of the University
of North Carolina, has been employed in field and laboratory investiga¬
tion of the formations of the Coastal Plain in North Carolina, and to
some extent in South Carolina. In pursuing his investigations Prof.
Holmes has availed himself of the courteous permission of the officials
of the railways traversing the Carolinas to travel over the various rail¬
way lines on a “crank car,” and has thus been enabled to visit the prin¬
cipal exposures of the coastal lowland in these States in the most expedi¬
tious and economical manner. He has, however, made a number of
boat journeys along North Carolina rivers for the purpose of examining
exposures in banks and bluffs not otherwise accessible. The fossils and
rock specimens collected during his various journeys have been examined
in the laboratory, classified, analyzed when necessary, and are now pre¬
served for reference in the preparation of final reports on the work in
that region. Prof. Holmes’s reconnaissance has extended over practi¬
cally the whole of the Coastal Plain in North Carolina and over much
of the same pixy vince in South Carolina; most of the formations have

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

been defined and classified ; lie lias already acquired such information
concerning his territory as to permit correlation of part of the Carolinian
formations with those of other portions of the Coastal Plain province ;
and he is now in possession of sufficient data to begin the areal repre¬
sentation of terranes as soon as the necessary topographic bases can be
furnished.

DR. LOUGHRIDGE’S WORK IN SOUTH CAROLINA.

During the last fiscal year Dr. E. H. Loughridge, then of the State
Agricultural College of South Carolina, was employed to construct a
section through the Coastal Plain in the Santee River basin. The field
work and a part of the laboratory work required were executed during
the last months of the previous year; but during the present year the
report has been rewritten and transmitted for the use of the division.
It contains valuable data which have been utilized in general correlation
of the formations, and in the coordination of work in other portions Of
the province.

MR. DARTON’S WORK ON THE MIDDLE ATLANTIC SLOPE.

Throughout the year Mr. Nelson H. Darton has been employed in the
work of the division in different parts of the Middle Atlantic Slope. In
the earlier portion of the year he made- a reconnaissance of the inland
margin of the Coastal Plain from Richmond to Philadelphia. Later in the
season he spent some months in mapping the areal distribution of the
Coastal Plain formations on the Fredericksburg Mount Vernon, Wash¬
ington and Baltimore atlas sheets; and during the year he completed
the coloration of the East Washington sheet and those portions of the
West Washington and Baltimore sheets occupied by the Neozoic form¬
ations. During the winter he prepared for publication as a bulletin the
annual record of North American geologic literature for 1890. He also
made material additions to the general card catalogue of American geo¬
logic literature. Laboratory investigations of field collections were also
made and general studies of the phenomena observed in the field were
carried forward and revised in proofs of the record of North American
geologic literature for 1887-89, which has just appeared as a bulletin
(No. 75). During spring and early summer of the present year he re¬
sumed field work, completing the cartography of the areas covered
by the sheets already mentioned, and making such a reconnaissance on
both sides of Chesapeake Bay as to place himself in position to immedi¬
ately begin the areal representation of the geologic formations of this
portion of the province when the topographic sheets are available. Dur¬
ing the latter part of April and the earlier part of May he participated
in the joint expedition already described.

In the Ninth Annual Report of the Geological Survey there was de¬
scribed a boring apparatus for taking samples of unconsolidated depos¬
its at various depths which was successfully used in Iowa in determining

MCGEE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

the stratigraphy of the Pleistocene deposits. Mr. Darton has employed
this device in developing the sequence of deposits and in defining the
limits of formations in the Coastal Plain during the last year with highly
satisfactory results. He has modified the apparatus already described
in such manner as to obtain greater strength with diminished weight.
With his modifications the apparatus weighs but a few pounds, can be
readily carried on foot, on horseback, or in light vehicles, and is capable
of bringing samples from all depths up to 20 or 30 feet with slight labor.

OFFICE WORK.

During the year the proofs of a memoir on the geology of northeastern
Iowa, forming a considerable part of the Eleventh Annual Report of the
Director of the Geological Survey, were receiyed from the printer and
the proofs of letter-press and illustrations were revised. The proofs of
the other memoir in the same report (The Natural Gas Field of Indiana),
which was prepared under my direction and of which I wrote the intro¬
ductory chapter, were also revised. During the closing portion of the
year a memoir on the Lafayette formation, designed for publication in
the Twelfth Annual Report, has been written and the accompanying
illustrations prepared. The monthly reports of the collaborators of the
division have been carefully studied from time to time in order that the
various lines of work of the division in the various parts of the province
with which it is concerned might be constantly coordinated and carried
forward in accordance with the general plans already formulated and
stated in other reports. Work upon the geologic map of New York, the
construction of which was commenced in this division some years ago,
has been continued during the year; but the work of Mr. J. B. Torbert,
who has been engaged in its construction, was interrupted in order that
he might prepare the analytic and other maps illustrating the memoir
on the Lafayette formation already referred to. Accordingly the New
York map is not yet completed.

Toward the close of the fiscal year the collection of material for a re¬
vised edition of the map of the United States exhibiting the status of
knowledge relating to the areal distribution of geologic groups published
in connection with the Fifth Annual Report of the Geological Survey in
1884 was commenced and a considerable part of the necessary data ac¬
cumulated.

I have the honor to be, with great respect, your obedient servant,

W J McGee,
Geologist in charge .

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

REPORT OF MR. BAILEY WILLIS.

United States Geological Survey,

Appalachian Division,
Washington , I). G., June 30 , 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit the annual report of progress cover¬
ing the operations of the Appalachian Division of Geology for the fiscal
year now closed.

ORGANIZATION AND FIELD WORK.

The force of the division consisted during this year of three assistant
geologists and myself, aided by such field assistants as the work required.

The beginning of the fiscal year found Messrs. C. W. Hayes and M.
R. Campbell in Georgia, with camp outfit, cook, and driver. They con¬
tinued field work until September 29, and Mr. Hayes then disbanded
the party, having during the field season, which began May 5, surveyed
in revision and in original work nearly 5,000 square miles. These gen¬
tlemen then joined me at Knoxville, and at my request spent the month
of October in detailed work on the Cambrian sandstones and shales of
the southwestern part of the Cleveland sheet. They reached Washing¬
ton on November 2.

Mr. Arthur Keith, who took the field with camp outfit, cook, and
driver on June 6, was near Maryville, Tennessee, July 1; there I joined
him, and we together studied the problems of Chilhowee Mountain and
of the Big Butt Range south of Greeueville. On August 18 I went to
Knoxville, while Mr. Keith continued his work in the Greeueville and
Morristown sheets. On August 30 he returned to Washington, and
September 4 proceeded with team and buckboard, and assisted by Mr.
Richard H. Gaines, to the survey of the Harper’s Ferry sheet, a study
which was completed in its first stage by November 3. Mr. Keith then
came to Washington for the winter’s office work.

I proceeded from Knoxville, with the camp outfit, through the Knox¬
ville, Cleveland, Kingston, and Loudon atlas sheets to review the geol¬
ogy mapped by Messrs. Keith and Hayes, and disbanded camp at Knox¬
ville on October 8. During this work I gave much attention to the
marbles of East Tennessee, and studied their character and occurrence
and the methods of quarrying. Returned to Washington, I considered
questions relating to winter work, and again took the field for two weeks
in West Virginia to verify the geologic draft of the Winchester atlas
sheet.

OFFICE WORK.

During the entire winter season Messrs. Keith, Hayes, and Campbell
were engaged in platting geologic notes on the topographic base maps,
in drawing sections, and in writing up the results of field work. I my-

WILLIS.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

self developed and applied a plan of office record for geologic results,
ga ve prolonged consideration to the nature of the topographic map which
is adequate for the geologist’s use, worked on the details of the scheme
of publication for geologic maps, and studied the mechanics of struc¬
tural geology.

RESULTS.

To prepare geologic maps for publication is the principal work of this
division, and to this end all efforts have been primarily directed. In
Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama surveys
have been made, either to discover the distribution of strata in areas
not previously examined by members of the Survey, or to revise former
results in order that all the maps may come up to the standard of accu¬
racy demanded by the scheme of publication. The present condition of
the geologic surveys, specified by atlas sheets, is as follows :

Eeady for publication :

Staunton, Virginia, sheet, by N. H. Darton.

Ringgold, Georgia, sheet, by C. W. Hayes.

Chattanooga, Tennessee, sheet, by C. W. Hayes.

Cleveland, Tennessee, sheet, by C. W. Hayes (except SE. corner).

Kingston, Tennessee, sheet, by C. W. Hayes.

Loudon, Tennessee, sheet, by Arthur Keith.

Knoxville, Tennessee, sheet, by Arthur Keith.

Morristown, Tennessee, sheet, by Arthur Keith.

Greeneville, Tennessee, sheet, by Arthur Keith.

Surveyed ; to be examined by the geologist in charge :

Winchester, Virginia, sheet, by H. R. Geiger.

Woodstock, Virginia, sheet, by H. R. Geiger.

Harper’s Ferry, Virginia and West Virginia, sheet, by Arthur Keith.

Maynardville, Tennessee, sheet, by Arthur Keith.

Stevenson, Alabama, sheet, by C. W. Hayes.

Dalton, Georgia, sheet, by C. W. Hayes.

Rome, Georgia, sheet, by C. W. Hayes.

Fort Payne, Alabama, sheet, by C. W. Hayes.

Gadsden, Alabama, sheet, by C. W. Hayes.

Each of these atlas sheets covers nearly 1,000 square miles of area;
the division is therefore prepared to publish maps of nearly 9,000 square
miles, and has provisional maps, which will require but little alteration,
covering 9,000 square miles more.

Iu my last annual report it was stated that the geological field work
passed through several stages in its progress from the first to the final
draft of the map. On beginning work in any district the assistant geol¬
ogist is furnished a topographic map of the atlas sheet assigned him,
and upon this he draws the geology while in the field with approximate
correctness and in such detail as the facilities at hand easily permit;
this first representation of the geologic areas is supplemented by note¬
book records, and with their aid it is later corrected in the office by the
same assistant. The geologist in charge, equipped with this carefully

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

prepared draft, examines the region and ascertains the character of the
work done, and, should it be necessary, gives instructions for additional
work by the author of the map. The final copy, sections, and descrip¬
tive text are then prepared and submitted for your approval. Experi¬
ence with this method shows that it may advantageously be modified,
where circumstances permit, by drawing the first representation in the
field with greater care and with the detail demanded for the final pub¬
lication. To do this takes more time for any given area and increases
the first cost of the assistants’ work per square mile; but it insures an
accurate result, it reduces the proportion of routine labor in the office,
and it facilitates the progress of any one sheet towards publication,
since it is possible for the geologist in charge to examine the final details
in the field as they develop. Thus is avoided the necessity of allowing
a year to elapse between the original survey by the assistant and the
verification by the geologist in charge.

While the regular work of mapping lithologic formations lias been
thus extended in Georgia, Alabama, and Virginia, and the methods of
field work have been improved, the scientific problems have been con¬
stantly considered. The Appalachian province has been studied by many
geologists, and the student of to-day must take account of the views of
his predecessors who have worked out the chapter headings of its his¬
tory. It is still a commonly held opinion that they have done more than
this, and that little can be added to our present knowledge, based as it
is on the researches of the most eminent American geologists. But the
fact that many points are yet in controversy is itself evidence that we
do not know or do not understand all the records of the region, and it
may warn those now working there that only the most patient and im¬
partial observation will lead to improvement in our knowledge. The
history of rock formation and disturbance was not simultaneously simi¬
lar over this great area, and a fruitful source of misunderstanding has
been the inclination to generalize for the whole province from the well-
known facts of some limited district. Such, for instance, is the cause of
dispute concerning the age of the so-called “Potsdam” sandstone in
Virginia and even farther south. Recognizing that our information is
in most respects all too incomplete for broad generalizations, the mem¬
bers of the division are endeavoring to collect facts for thorough descrip¬
tions of the several districts under survey, and guided by the method of
mapping lithologic units rather than theoretic time divisions, they pro¬
gress steadily, and, I believe, surely, in their task.

Mr. Hayes, following southward from Tennessee a well known phase
of Appalachian folding and faulting, traced the “Rome” and “Carters-
ville” overthrusts along their curved outcrops, which in passing through
Georgia form two strikingly parallel quadrants so that their courses
change from nearly dne south to west. In this section these faults are
characterized by nearly horizontal displacements of four miles or more,
and they give evidence of antecedent and subsequent periods of folding;

WILLIS.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

thus it is indicated that Appalachian deformation progressed to its pres¬
ent development by several steps. Mr. Hayes presented an article em¬
bodying the principal conclusions of his Georgia work to the Geological
Society of America at the last December meeting.

Mr. Keith, pursuing his mapping in East Tennessee, developed the
system of faults which isolate the Cambrian of Chilhowee Mountain, and
showed on structural and stratigraphic evidence the Silurian age of
series of strata hitherto considered older on lithologic grounds. In his
work in the Harper’s Ferry sheet Mr. Keith developed reasons for plac¬
ing the sandstones of the Blue Ridge in that region above the valley
limestones, and he delivered a paper before the Geological Society set-
ing forth the views of himself and his predecessor in that field, Mr. H.
R. Geiger.

In structural geology progress has been made in developing the sug¬
gestions of the structural experiments, and the preparation of a filial
paper on those tests and the application of the hypotheses to Appala¬
chian structure is well advanced. While this work is essentially my
own, I am greatly assisted by the detailed facts furnished by the other
members of the division.

FURTHER WORK.

The plans for the spring and the fiscal year now beginning were in¬
fluenced by the condition of the previous work and by the force of the
division. This was lessened by the departure of Mr. Hayes on April 10,
to accompany Lieut. Schwatka on an expedition to Alaska. On April
15 Mr. Campbell took the field with camp outfit, cook, and driver, to
survey the Estillville and other sheets in southern Virginia. Mr. J. V.
Lewis, of Chapel Hill, Korth Carolina, has been appointed as his assistant.
Mr. Keith continued office work until June 17, when he proceeded to the
revision of details in the draft of the Harper’s Ferry sheet. His further
work this summer will consist in rounding out our knowledge of that
part of east Tennessee where he has already accomplished so much, with
the expectation of publishing next year. He is assisted by Mr. J. H.
Shields, jr., of St. Louis, and will work without camp. I shall continue
to work toward the publication of maps and other results.

Submitted with great respect by

Bailey Willis,
Geologist in charge.

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

12 GrEOL - 6

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

REPORT OF MR. GEORGE H. ELDRIDGE.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Florida Division,
Washington, JD. G., June 30, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit herewith a report of the work of this
division for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1891.

The division was established by you on the 1st of January of this year .
with the following objects in view: The mapping of geologic formations ;
the construction of sections to exhibit the stratigraphy of the peninsula ;
and the investigation of phosphate deposits and of other resources of
economic value.

By your direction I assumed charge of the division on January 2; Dr.
Edmund Jiissen was assigned me as assistant, and a little later Mr.
Lawrence C. Johnson, the latter by transfer from the Potomac Division.
On February 16 Mr. AV. S. Norwood, of Titusville, Florida, joined the
division in the capacity of field assistant. In the study of the general
geology cooperation has been maintained with Mr. AV. J. McGee, in
charge of the Potomac Division; with Air. AV. H. Dali, paleontologist,
and with Dr. T. Al. Chatard in the study of the chemical problems of the
phosphate deposits.

Prior to entering upon work in Florida a preliminary examination of
the phosphate deposits in South Carolina was made, and in company
with Air. McGee several localities on the Coastal Plain were visited for
the purpose of bringing future work in Florida initially into proper
relation with that of the Potomac Division. AVork in Florida was insti¬
tuted on January 12.

After the consumption of a few days at the outset in devising a gen¬
eral plan of procedure, during which some preliminary studies of the
formations and phosphate deposits of northern Florida were made,
reconnaissance work upon the rock phosphate belt of the peninsula
was immediately begun and occupied the time to February 11. Upon
this work I was accompanied by Drs. Chatard and Jiissen, and the
general problems of the geology and chemistry of the rock phosphates
were determined. At its completion Dr. Chatard returned to AVash-
ington for the purpose of entering directly upon the laboratory studies
of the chemistry of the phosphates, and Dr. Jiissen was assigned to the
general and detailed study of the Eocene formation within the areal
limits of which the phosphates of this class in peninsular Florida occur.
Dr. Jiissen has well advanced the work of the Eocene area, but it will
require at least a portion of another season to complete it.

Air. Johnson, upon entering on his duties with the Florida Division
(having already a considerable acquaintance with the formations of the
Gulf States), was assigned to the field west of the Suwanee River, a
field intimately connected in its stratigraphy with that of the States.

ELDRIDGE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

farther to the west, and one, moreover, which is of great importance
from the phosphate deposits now rapidly being developed within its
eastern half. The general survey of the area lying between the Suwa-
nee and Apalachicola Rivers is now fast nearing completion.

Besides the general direction of the work of the division the explora¬
tions conducted by myself during the remainder of the season were the
following : The interval between the middle of February and the 15th
of March was occupied in the examination of the phosphate deposits
and related geology of South Florida. From the nature and rapidity
of the commercial development of the two classes of deposits, here oc¬
curring, land and river pebble, the work of the last season, although
well in hand, can not be regarded as other than preliminary.

The latter half of March was occupied in the examination of the rock
phosphate deposits of western Florida. At the time of visiting them
the chief developments were in the vicinity of the Econfena, Aucilla,
and Wacissa Rivers in Taylor, Madison, and Jefferson Counties, but the
deposits are known to extend for considerable distances east and west
of the area there developed. The work of Mr. Johnson in this held
will materially supplement mine, and, with the important data upon the
general geology gathered during his more detailed examination, should
make possible the correlation of the formations of western and peninsu¬
lar Florida.

The month of April, with the exception of the first ten days, during
which both official duty and personal illness required that I should re¬
main at Ocala, was passed in a geological reconnaissance of the lake
and river system of central southern Florida. The journey was made
in a steam launch, the initial point beiug the town of Kissimmee, at the
head of Lake Tohopekaliga, the objective the Gulf of Mexico, the route
being through the Kissimmee River and the numerous lakes and streams
tributary to it, around Lake Okeechobee, and down the Caloosahatchie
River to its mouth. The results of this trip were both general and eco¬
nomic in character, the former in reference to the stratigraphy of the
peninsula as far south as the Everglades, the latter in the study of the
pebble phosphates of the Caloosahatchie River from Lake Flirt to Fort
Myers.

The first half of May was passed in miscellaneous work, including a
hasty examination of the east coast, an investigation of the kaolin de¬
posits in the vicinity of Leesburg, a study of peculiar deposits of phos¬
phate at Anthony and Sparr, a few miles north of Ocala, the inaugura¬
tion of a systematic investigation of the artesian water supply of the
State, and the preparations for closing the season’s work.

On May 1 Dr. Jiissen was unavoidably called to his home by private
matters, and field work on the Eocene area was stopped.

During the period of Mr. Norwood’s employment his duties have been
confined to preliminary explorations along the eastern side of the penin¬
sula as far south as Lakes Worth and Okeechobee, and to the collection

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

of rock specimens and fossils illustrative of the country over which he
traveled.

In the prosecution of the season’s work special attention has been
paid to the collection of a complete suite of the phosphates and other
rocks of the areas studied, and fossils have been gathered wherever
found. Attention has also been paid to the methods of treatment in the
preparation of the phosphates for market, and the importance of this
branch of the industry is frilly recognized. In cooperating with Mr.
Ball great assistance has been derived from the work already done by
him, and it is expected that by combining results a creditable prelimi¬
nary map of the geology of the State can be prepared before the open¬
ing of another season.

On the 16th of May I left the field for the North, revisiting the South
Carolina phosphate deposits en route, and reaching Washington on
the 20th.

Office work was immediately resumed by Dr. Jiissen and myself, and
the time to the close of the year has been chietiy devoted to the arrange¬
ment of the season’s collections.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

Geo. H. Eldridge,

Geologist in charge.

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

REPORT OF PROF. C. R VAN HISE.

II. S. Geological Survey,

Lake Superior Division,
Madison , Wisconsin , July 1 , 1891.

Sir : I submit the following report of the operations of the division of
the Survey under my charge for the fiscal year ending yesterday:

Until last year the plan of operations has included two classes of
work: Detailed studies of regions of exceptional scientific interest or
economic importance leading to special reports, and studies designed to
furnish atlas sheets for the geological map of the United States. Be¬
ginning last year, by your direction, a third line of work was taken up,
a general study of the pre-Cambrian rocks of North America, prepara¬
tory to an account of the present state of knowledge of the Algonkian
or Arcliean. During the year just closed all of these three lines of work
have been continued.

FIELD WORK.

Field work has been done by W. S. Bayley, E. T. Eriksen, C. W. Hall,
F. P. King, George E. Luther, W. N. Merriam, and myself.

Aside from supervision of other parties, my own time has been given

VAN HISE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

almost wholly to the general work on the pre-Cambrian. In company
with Raphael Pnmpelly, Bailey Willis, C. D. Walcott, or G-. H. Williams,
or alone, I have made more or less extended trips in Georgia, east Ten¬
nessee, North Carolina, eastern Pennsylvania, northern New Jersey,
southern New York, the Berkshire Hills, Green Mountains, Adiron-
dacks, Hastings district of Ontario, and the Marquette and Thunder
Bay districts of Lake Superior. For the most part this work has not
been of such a detailed nature as to add greatly to previous knowledge
of these regions, but the aim has been rather to get such a familiarity
with them as would enable me in the preparation of the pre-Cambrian
memoir to judge accurately of the results already reached. This state¬
ment does not apply to a part of the Adirondacks, where a somewhat
closer study was made, nor to the Marquette and Thunder Bay districts,
where information was acquired which has an important bearing upon
the writer’s conception of the general stratigraphy of the Lake Superior
region. Also in the other regions visited much interesting material was
obtained bearing upon the metamorphism of rocks, upon the develop¬
ment of cleavage and schistosity, and upon the methods which are ap¬
plicable to the study of the crystalline formations. This work occupied
the most of the time from the 1st of July to the middle of October, as
well as a fortnight in April.

Mr. Bayley, with Mr. Luther as field assistant, and one woodsman,
continued the detailed systematic study of the Marquette district which
Mr. Merriam has been carrying on for two years. This year for the first
time topographic maps were available to assist in the work. Using
these as a basis, locations were made in large measure with stadia tele¬
scope and plane table instead of by the method of pacing from section
lines. The Goose Lake section, in which the work was done, is the
roughest in the whole district, and it would have been nearly impossible
to make locations with any considerable degree of accuracy by pacing.
The party began work July 2 and remained in the field until September
18. Work in the Marquette district was again resumed May 28 by a
party in charge of Mr. Merriam, and is continuing at the present time.
His party consists, besides himself, of Mr. Eriksen, field assistant, two
compassmen, and one cook.

The Marquette area is one of the key districts of the south shore of
Lake Superior, and it is designed to push the work vigorously until its
structure is worked out. This done, the areal work of the Upper Pen¬
insula of Michigan will be in such condition that it will be practicable
to turn in a number of atlas sheets for the geological map of the United
States. Besides being of grefit structural importance, the Marquette
district is the largest iron producer of Lake Superior, and it is hoped
that, incident to the structural study, economic results of value will also
be obtained. This hope is justified by such an outcome from a similar
structural study of the Penokee district. It is designed to present the

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

results of the work in the Marquette area in the form of a monograph,
in scope like that already submitted upon the Penokee area.

The beginning of the fiscal year found Mr. King in the field in charge
of a party consisting, besides himself, of one woodsman, one packer, and
one cook. The work of this party was atlas-slieet mapping in the area
between the Penokee and Marquette districts, lying mostly in the sheets
bounded by meridians 88° 30' and 89° 30', and parallels 40° and 46° 30'.
The district was found to be heavily drift- covered; exposures were con¬
sequently rare, and it will therefore not be practicable to locate forma¬
tion lines with accuracy. All information that could be obtained as to
the location of ledges was used, so that as much lias been found out
about this area as can be done without a more detailed study than can
be undertaken. The season’s work ended September 17, the party cov¬
ering about 1,000 square miles.

June 1 Mr. King left Madison for the field to continue areal work on
the southern part of the atlas sheet lying between the meridians 87° 30'
and 88°, and parallels 46° and 4G° 30'. His party consists, besides him¬
self, of one compass man, one packer, and one cook. This work is being
continued at the present time.

Mr. Hall did a small amount of field work in central Minnesota. He
also collected a set of specimens of amygdaloids occurring at Grand
Marais, Minnesota, for the Educational Series of rocks in charge of Mr.
Hiller.

OFFICE WORK.

Aside from the routine work of the office, my time, both at Madison
and in Washington, has been given to the preparation of a report upon
the pre-Cambrian of Korth America. This report comprises a review of
the published facts and conclusions as to pre-Cambrian stratigraphy,
classified according to districts; a summary of the results which have
been reached in each district; and a general discussion of what has been
accomplished in pre-Cambrian stratigraphy, with a consideration of the
methods of study and the principles of classification and correlation ap¬
plicable to this part of the geological column. The task of going through
and summarizing the literature of the subject has been one of great
labor. Mr. Luther has given the most of his time in the office to assist¬
ance in the preparation of this report; and Mr. Merriam has spent a
considerable amount of time in drawing maps in connection with it. I
am able to state that the report, towards which most of my field work
and nearly all of my time in the office has been looking for two years, is
now ready for transmission.

Mr. Bayley has continued the study of the gabbros of Minnesota,
Michigan, and Wisconsin began during the preceding fiscal year.. The
thin sections of all the gabbros belonging to the division, as well as
others loaned by Prof. K. H. Winchell, State geologist of Minnesota,
Prof. F, D. Chester of Delaware College, and Dr. Geo. H. Williams of

VAN HISE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

Johns Hopkins University, have been studied. The contemplated re¬
port upon the gabbros of Lake Superior is not yet completed, nor can it
be until more field work has been done in the Minnesota region. Aside
from this work, Mr. Bayley’s time has been given to the description of
a number of thin sections for the Educational Series of rocks in the
charge of Mr. Hiller, and in the transcription, and elaboration of his field
notes.

The small amount of time which Mr. Hall has given to the survey
work has been upon proposed bulletins upon the Minnesota Valley
gneisses and upon the granites of central Minnesota. The former is
now ready for transmission.

A large number of specimens, photographs, and thin sections have
been added to the collection in the office. In press, or in the Washing¬
ton office ready for press, from the division, are the following reports:
A monograph on the Penokee Iron-Bearing Series of Michigan and Wis¬
consin, by B. D. Irving and C. B. Van Hise; a bulletin on the Eruptive
and Sedimentary Bocks on Pigeon Point, Minnesota, and Their Contact
Phenomena, by W. S. Bayleyj a bulletin on the Gneisses and Crystal¬
line Schists of the Minnesota Biver Valley, by C. W. Hall; a bulletin
on the Present State of Knowledge of the pre-Cambrian of North Amer¬
ica, by C. B. Van Hise, is nearly complete and will be forwarded in a
few weeks.

Following, are the titles of the papers which have appeared from the
division during the year:

(1) The Greenstone Schist Areas of the Menominee and Marquette
Begions of Michigan, by G. H. Williams, with an Introduction by B. D.
Irving: Bulletin No. 62, U. S. G. S.

(2) Abstract of a Monograph upon the Penokee Iron-Bearing Series
of Michigan and Wisconsin, by B. D. Irving and C. B. Van Hise: Tenth
Annual Beport U. S. G. S., pp. 341-509.

(3) An Attempt to harmonize some apparently conflicting Views of
Lake Superior Stratigraphy, by C. B. Van Hise: Am. Jour. Sci., 3d
series, vol. 41, 1891, pp. 117-137.

Very respectfully,

Mr. G. Iv. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

C. B. Van Hise,

Geologist in Charge.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

REPORT OF DR. T. C. CHAMBERLIN.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Glacial Geology,

Madison , Wisconsin , July 1 , 1891 .

Sir : I have the honor to submit herewith a report of the operations
of the glacial division of the U. S. Geological Survey for the fiscal year
ending June 30, 1891.

Mr. Warren Uphani has been occupied during the entire year in the
preparation of manuscript and maps relating to his field work of previ¬
ous years. The larger part of his time has been given to a monograph
on the glacial Lake Agassiz, which is well advanced toward completion.
In the earlier part of the year, he finished his report upon the extension
of Lake Agassiz north of the international boundary, based upon field
work performed under the joint auspices of the geological surveys of
the United States and Canada. The duplicate copy of this report fur¬
nished the Canadian survey was published as part of the annual report
of the Survey for ISSS-’SO, being entitled “Report of exploration of the
Glacial Lake Agassiz in Manitoba ” and comprising 156 pages, with a
plate of sections and two maps.

Near the end of the year the altitudes determined by railroad surveys
and other means in the area of Lake Agassiz and an extensive region
adjoining, which Mr. Upham had compiled in connection with his own
determinations of the heights of the ancient lake beaches and deltas,
have been published as Bulletin No. 72, entitled “Altitudes between
Lake Superior and the Rocky Mountains.” A considerable part of
Mr. Upham’s time, during several months, was occupied in repeated
verifications of the altitudes given and in arranging the material and
in proof-reading the text.

Prof. R. D. Salisbury was engaged in field work during the most of
July, all of August, and the earlier part of September, in a special study
of the relations of the glacial drift, the loess deposits, and the orange
sands in the vicinity of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, in southern Illi¬
nois, Missouri, Kentucky, and Indiana. The special purpose of the study
was to determine the connection of the loess deposits with the drift and
their contemporaneity, and to settle the question whether the orange
sands are continuous with any portion of the drift or are entirely dis¬
tinct from it in time of deposition and in mode of origin. In the latter
part of December and the first of January, about two weeks were spent
in a critical restudy of several localities for the purpose of obtaining
more complete and accurate data and for verification. The latter por¬
tion of April and the whole of May and June were given to field work
in the same general region. The Illinois River was examined from the

CHAMBERLIN.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

vicinity of its great bend to its month with special reference to the con¬
nections and relations of the loess sheets and the gravel terraces of the
river valley. The Mississippi Valley, between the mouth of the Missouri
and Rock Island, was studied, and the relations of the orange-sand de¬
posits, the loess sheets, and the terraces of the later glacial epoch were
determined. Some time was also spent in establishing the character
of a newly discovered driftless area in the counties of Calhoun and Pike,
Illinois. The relations of the three formations mentioned above were
studied in the Ohio Valley between Louisville and Covington.

At the beginning of the fiscal year Mr. Frank Leverett was engaged
in mapping the several moraines of the western limb of the Scioto ice-
lobe and in tracing each moraine, so far as possible, into connection with
its correlative in the Great Miami Jibe. This was, in effect, the work¬
ing out of the evolution of ice-lobation for the region. In the latter part
of April the more complete tracing out of the details of the ice-lobation
of the Grand River region was undertaken, and the most of August and
September and a part of November were occupied in this work. The
area included in the study embraces northeastern Ohio, northwestern
Pennsylvania, and the southwestern corner of New York. The differ¬
entiation of the earlier from the later drifts and the working out of the
later phases of lobation and the outline of the ice after the lobe had en¬
tirely disappeared were embraced in this study, and certain important
relationships of the moraines to ancient lake beaches determined. The
latter part of October was employed in a study of the interlobate tract
lying between the Grand River lobe and the area of the Scioto glacier.
In November the outer moraine of a sublobe of the Scioto glacier lying
east of the main lobe, in the region between Canton and Mansfield, Ohio,
was traced out and several later moraines of the Scioto lobe proper were
traced across the Scioto basin westward to the meridian of Lima,

Field work was suspended November 25. The winter season was
given to the preparation of a bulletin on the Grand River Glacier, which
was essentially completed, and a bulletin upon The Scioto Glacial Lobe,
which reached an advanced stage, but which can be made complete only
after some additional field work. An article for the American Journal
of Science was prepared upon the “Pleistocene glacial plains of western
Pennsylvania.”

Prof. James E. Todd has essentially completed the preparation of his
manuscript report upon the glacial deposits of southern and central
Dakota and northeastern Nebraska. His field work was limited to a few
days of review work in the latter part of August and in the latter part
of May.

Mr. I. M. Buell did a limited amount of field work in extension of his
tracings of the bowlder drift from the crystalline outcrops of central
Wisconsin, as previously reported.

My own service on the Survey has been confined chiefly to adminis¬
trative duty and to field consultation with Prof. Salisbury respecting the

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Pleistocene and pre-Pleistocene deposits along the Ohio and Mississippi
Rivers in Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois.

Very respectfully submitted.

T. C. Chamberlin,

Geologist in charge.

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

REPORT OF MR. W. P. JENNEY.

U. S. Geological Survey',

Division of Zinc,

St. Louis , Missouri, June 30, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to make the following report of the work under
my charge for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1891.

During the first half of the year I was employed at Washington, Dis¬
trict of Columbia, examining the material collected the preceding season,
and in the preparation of a preliminary report on the deposits of lead
and zinc ores in southwest Missouri.

Accompanied by my assistant, Mr. C. E. Kloeber, I left Washington
February 1, 1891, and resumed field work, proceeding first to Little
Rock, Arkansas, for the purpose of making a comparative examination
of the mines of argentiferous lead and zinc occurring in the belt of ele¬
vated country stretching from the vicinity of that city westward to
Indian Territory. Having completed this investigation of the Arkansas
ore deposits, I commenced a detailed investigation of the deposits of
zinc and lead ores in the southwestern part of Missouri, this field work
being in progress at the close of the fiscal year.

Mr. C. E. Kloeber accompanied me in the work in the field from Feb¬
ruary 1 until May 31, 1891, when he was compelled by ill health to
return to Washington, District of Columbia, his place being filled for
the balance of the year by Mr. Richard McCullock.

I desire to express my great indebtedness to Prof. H. S. Williams, of
Cornell University, paleontologist of the Geological Survey, for assist¬
ance given in the determination of the stratigraphy of the region under
investigation. From Prof. J. C. Branner and assistants, of the Arkansas
State survey, I received many courtesies and much information of value
in the investigation of the mines of that section. To Mr. David White,
of the U. S. National Museum, I am indebted for a report on fossil plants
collected from certain deposits of the age of the later Coal Measures in
Jasper County, Missouri.

Respectfully submitted.

W. P. Jenney,

Geologist in charge.

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

PEALE.l

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

REPORT OF MR. A. C. PEALE.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Montana Division,
Washington, D. C., July 1 , 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit the following- report of operations of
the Montana Division for the year ending June 30, 1891 :

FIELD WORK.

The first field work of the year was done at Great Falls, on the Mis¬
souri River, where three days (July 18 to 21) were spent with Mr. F. H.
Knowlton, of Mr. Ward’s division, in the examination of the Kootanie
beds exposed near there in the banks of the river. An attempt was also
made to determine the relations of these beds to the sand coulee coal¬
beds, but the time at our disposal was too limited to make any satisfac¬
tory correlation or identifications. A collection of fossil plants was ob¬
tained from three horizons of the Kootanie beds near Great Falls.

From Great Falls we proceeded to Bozeman, where the camp was
established July 23. During the previous field season it was found
necessary to leave unfinished an area of about 50 square miles in the
extreme southwest corner of the Three Forks sheet. The last week of
July and the first two days of August were devoted to the working of this
area, which is about 75 miles from Bozeman, but to reach which neces¬
sitated our traversing about 30 miles on the adjacent Dillon sheet.

The work was satisfactorily accomplished, and after returning to Boze¬
man the main work of the season was begun August 7, in the south¬
eastern quarter of the Three Forks sheet. This included an area of
about 864 square miles of mountainous country, entirely unsettled and
without roads, through the central part of which the Gallatin River
flows on its way from the Yellowstone Park to the Missouri River. Its
eastern and western tributaries rendered access to the adjacent country
comparatively easy, and it was all examined and mapped geologically
by the end of September, thus completing the atlas sheet. Mr. Knowl¬
ton accompanied us throughout the entire trip.

After the return to Bozeman the first week of October was devoted to
a flying trip to the Canyon of the Jefferson River above “Three Forks,”
where an attempt was made to trace two interesting fault lines that
occur there. Stormy weather prevented much work being done, and it
was reluctantly abandoned until another season.

After shipping the collections of the season, and storing the field
property, I proceeded, via Portland, Oregon, to California, where I spent
eleven days in work connected with the collection of statistics of Min¬
eral Waters in connection with the Eleventh Census.

Office work was begun in Washington in November and continued
until the end of the first week in June, when the field was taken again

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

for tlie purpose of tracing several fault lines and reviewing certain
doubtful areas in different parts of the sheet before finally coloring the
atlas sheet geologically.

OFFICE WORK.

My time in the office during the year has been devoted mainly to the
collection of Mineral Water statistics for the Eleventh Census. This
work has been completed and the results are embodied in an Extra
Bulletin (No. 4), entitled “Mineral Waters,” published by the Census
Office, and will also form a part of the final report on the Mineral
Resources of the United States, by Mr. David T. Day.

The manuscript on the “Paleozoic Section in the vicinity of Three
Forks, Montana,” has also been revised, and a biographical sketch of
Dr. F. Y. Hayden, with bibliography of his published writings, has been
prepared and will probably be published as a Bulletin of the National
Museum. These, together with routine office work, occupied all my
time from November until June that was not devoted to the work for
the Census.

Very respectfully,

A. C. Peale,

Geologist in charge.

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

REPORT OF MR. ARNOLD HAGUE.

U. S. Geological Survey,
Yellowstone National Park Division,

Washington , B. 6'., June 30, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to transmit herewith the following report of
operations conducted under my charge during the year ending June 30,
1891.

FIELD WORK.

In this division field work has been confined for the most part to the
country lying north of the Yellowstone National Park, situated between
the forty-fifth and forty-sixth parallels of north latitude and the one hun¬
dred and tenth and one hundred and eleventh meridians west from Green¬
wich. The area thus defined is embraced within a single map of the
geological atlas, and designated the Livingston sheet. The forty-fifth
parallel marks the boundary line between the States of Montana and
Wyoming.

In accordance with instructions, Mr. Joseph P. Iddings left Washing¬
ton the latter part of last June, for Bozeman, Montana, to outfit two
parties for a season of field work. Mr. Walter H. Weed joined Mr.

HAGUE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

Iddings on June 30. All necessary preparations having been completed,
both parties, one under Mr. Iddings, the other under Mr. Weed, left
Bozeman July 7, for the field of survey.

Early in July Mr. Louis V. Pirsson, of the Sheffield Scientific School
of Yale University, left New Haven to become a member of Mr. Iddings’s
party as an assistant in geology, having already in the previous year
rendered valuable aid as a volunteer in field work. At the same time
Mr. W. Preston Redmond, of New Jersey, joined the party of Mr. Weed
as volunteer assistant. Both gentlemen remained with the parties till the
close of the season in the autumn, and were of great assistance in the
prosecution of the work.

Mr. Iddings was engaged throughout the entire season in the higher
and more rugged portions of the Snowy Range, a grand group of moun¬
tains forming the principal physical feature of the country north of the
Park. The Snowy Range may be considered as an extension north¬
ward of the Absaroka Range, and is sharply defined on the south, west,
and north, by the Yellowstone River. Mr. Iddings’s time was mainly
devoted to investigating and mapping the crystalline schists and gneisses
which form the nucleus of an old range, and the later Tertiary volcanic
rocks breaking through them. The volcanic rocks, which by their vast
accumulations bury nearly everything beneath them for nearly one
hundred miles in the Absaroka Range, gradually die out in the Snowy
Range.

Considerable time was given to an examination of the mineral devel¬
opments found in the more elevated portions of the range, near the
headwaters of the Boulder River, a broad mountain torrent, which run¬
ning northward empties into the Yellowstone east of Livingston. Owing
to the high altitude of the mines, but little work has been accomplished,
although the occurrence of precious metals has been known for many
years. The season is short, the obstacles to steady development
many; consequently the miners have, in a great measure, temporarily
abandoned the field.

All the necessary field work, including the mapping of the different
volcanic areas in the Snowy Range, was completed by the middle of
October.

To Mr. Weed was assigned the duty of studying the upturned sedi¬
mentary beds which form outer ridges encircling the crystalline area on
the north and west. These sedimentary beds of Paleozoic and Mesozoic
age, extend northward as far as the broad valley of the Yellowstone.

Mr. Weed also explored the belt of mountains lying between the Yel¬
lowstone Valley and the Gallatin River to the westward, and stretch¬
ing from the line of the Northern Pacific Railroad southward to Electric
Peak. As this country adjoins the region which Dr. A. C. Peale has so
carefully studied, it was thought best for Mr. Weed and Dr. Peale to
go over together the contiguous territory in order to compare and cor¬
relate the results of their observations. This was accomplished in a
manner satisfactory to both of them.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Iii addition to Ids other duties, Mr. Weed devoted as much time as
possible to questions relating to the glaciation of the higher country on
both sides of the Yellowstone River, and to the Pleistocene history of
the valley. In the prosecution of this latter work he spent between two
and three weeks studying the formations in the valley all the way from
Gardiner, where the river leaves the mountainous country of the Park,
to Big Timber, east of Livingston.

I instructed Mr. Weed to give special attention to the examination of
the Cinnabar and Bozeman coal fields, both of which were situated
within the area of the Survey. The Cinnabar field lies on the west
side of the Yellowstone Y alley, just north of the Yellowstone Park.
Although the coal area is limited in extent, the quality is excellent, and
the output increasing every year. The Bozeman field lies about forty
miles to the north of the Cinnabar field, and has been worked longer
than any other coal area in Montana. It was first visited by the geolo¬
gists of the Hayden Survey, but the seams were never thorougly ex¬
plored until the organization of the Northern Transcontinental Survey,
for whom Mr. George H. Eldridge made an examination which resulted
in the opening of the mines at Timberline and Cokedale. Since that
time large amounts of coal have been taken out.

Two weeks’ time was given to an examination of the geyser basins in
the Yellowstone Park, for the purpose of making the usual annual study
of the changes taking place in the hot springs from year to year, a subject
of much geological importance and one perfectly familiar to Mr. Weed
from his experience in previous years. After spending a few days in
each of the principal hot spring areas, including the Upper Geyser Basin,
Lower Geyser Basin, Norris Geyser Basin, and Mammoth Hot Springs,
he returned to his other field of work.

I purposed taking the field myself by midsummer, but owing to a
pressure of other duties which delayed me for a longer time than was
at first anticipated, I decided to remain in the East, directing the work
in the field from here.

Both branches of the Survey closed their labors about the middle of
October, the severity of the weather, and incessant storms accompanied
by heavy snow-falls, preventing their remaining out till November 1, as
had been planned.

Mr. Iddings and Mr. Weed returned to Washington, after a successful
season, early in November.

OFFICE WORK.

Since the close of the field season a considerable portion of the time
in the office has been occupied in recording the results obtained in the
field and in preparing a preliminary geological map of the country on
both sides of the Yellowstone River north of the Yellowstone Park.
This enables us to map the geological formations through which the
Yellowstone River runs, from its source in the great lake on the Park

HAGUE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

Plateau to the broad Cretaceous plains east of Livingston. This work
necessarily required much time, as it embraced nearly every branch of
geological inquiry and included rocks of all ages, from the Archean up
to recent Pleistocene deposits. The areal geology lias been laid down
over the greater part of the Livingston sheet, and during the next
season the unsurveyed areas can easily be completed. The work on
the monograph and map of the Yellowstone Park has progressed very
materially. All preliminary petrographical studies upon the igneous
rocks have been completed, and but little remains to be done in the
way of chemical investigation, at least on the lines as originally laid
down.

During the year I have completed the monograph on the geology of the
Eureka district, and will submit it for publication early in the summer.
The sedimentary beds exposed at Eureka offer the most complete record
of Paleozoic rocks, from the Lower Cambrian to the Upper Coal meas¬
ures, of any area in the Great Basin. Breaking through these sediment¬
ary beds occur a great variety of Tertiary igneous rocks, the region
having been one of great volcanic energy. The monograph is mainly a
study of these two classes of rocks and their relations to each other. A
geological atlas accompanies the monograph, the area surveyed embrac¬
ing twenty miles square.

After Mr. Weed’s return from Montana, I was anxious that the prin¬
cipal results of his examination of the Cinnabar and Bozeman coal fields
should be prepared for publication and made accessible to all interested
in the geology of the Western coal areas. These results were recorded
in an important paper entitled: “The Cinnabar and Bozeman Coal
Fields of Montana,” which Mr. Weed read before the Geological Society
of America, December 31, 1890. In this article he points out the fact
that the coals of the two fields were identical in age and probably occur
near the base of the Laramie sandstones. The Bozeman coal rocks
were traced over a large area, extending northward for nearly twenty-
five miles from the present coal developments. Their great value lies
in the close proximity of the mines to the main line of the Northern
Pacific Railroad.

For the greater part of the winter Mr. Iddings was engaged in the
completion of his report upon the eruptive rocks of Electric Peak and
Sepulcher Mountain in the Yellowstone National Park. This work con¬
stitutes a chapter in the geological literature of the Park region. The
article has been submitted for publication in the Twelfth Annual Report
of the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey.

In conjunction with Mr. C. D. Walcott, Mr. Iddings has been study¬
ing the pre-Cambrian lavas of the Grand Canyon of the Colorado from
material collected by the former on the occasion of his visit to that re¬
gion. They propose to publish a joint paper on the subject, which is
one of much geological interest, as very little is known as to the earlier
lavas in the Cordillera. Mr. Iddings also presented a paper to the Phil-

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

osophical Society of Washington in April on “Spherulitic Crystalliza¬
tion/’ embodying the results of a study of additional material obtained
from Obsidian Cliff, which was collected for the Educational Series of
Rocks now in course of preparation by the Survey.

During the last year Mr. Iddings’s article “On a Group of Volcanic
Rocks from the Tewan Mountains, New Mexico,* and on the occurrence
of Primary Quartz in certain Basalts” has been published as Bulletin
No. 66 of the Survey.

In addition to other publications in connection with the work in the
Yellowstone Park Division, I should mention an interesting communica¬
tion on the mineral, mordenite, published in the American Journal of
Science for September, 1890, by Mr. Louis V. Pirsson, a volunteer assistant
in the held. Owing to the very high ratio of the silica to the bases, the
existence of mordenite as a distinct species has always been questioned,
especially as it had never been found in distinct crystals. It was sup¬
posed to be a mixture of some undetermined zeolite with more or less
silica. The finding of this mineral, crystallized, encrusting the cavities
in vesicular basalt, is a matter of much interest to both geologists and
mineralogists.

Very respectfully, yours,

Arnold Hague,
Geologist in charge.

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

REPORT OF MR S. F. EMMONS.

IT. S. Geological Survey,

Colorado Division,
Washington , D. G., June 30, 1891.

Sir : I beg to submit herewith a report of work done in the division
under my charge during the fiscal year 1890-91.

FIELD WORK.

In pursuance of the policy adopted by the Director some time ago
of pushing to publication work already in hand as rapidly as consonant
with accuracy and thoroughness, no new field work has been under¬
taken during the year, but portions of the summer months were devoted
by the various members of the division to such work, in fields already
occupied, as seemed important for the completion of data already gath¬
ered, especial regard being had to the economic bearing of the results
of our geological investigations.

Leadville. — As ten years have now elapsed since the completion of the
field work of my monograph on the geology and mining industry of the

EMMONS. 1

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

Leadville mining region, (luring which time underground explorations
have been carried on with a rapidity unknown in any other part of the
world, resulting in the production of over $150,000,000 worth of silver and
lead, and as thereby a great underground area has been made accessible
to observation and study, it seemed important that these mine workings
should be examined before they became inaccessible through abandon¬
ment, in order that the geological facts disclosed by them might be put
on record for future scientific use and that it might be seen whether the
theories of ore deposition deduced from the original observations were
borne out by these facts, or required modification. The mining com¬
munity of Leadville was extremely anxious that such an examination
should be undertaken, considering the present time a critical one in the
development of the region, and they offered every facility in their power
in furtherance of the work.

The investigation of the underground geology of mining districts is,
in its nature, very much more expensive than other geological investi¬
gations carried on by the Survey, and the allotment of work for the year
was such that but a limited amount of money could be devoted to this
investigation. I was authorized, however, to accomplish what I could
with this amount. The months of August and September were spent
by me in Leadville, during which time I personally examined the under¬
ground workings of the larger mines that were accessible and made full
notes upon the geological phenomena disclosed by them, with especial
reference to the extent and form of the many intrusive bodies of erup¬
tive rock and of the faults that can not be seen at all upon the surface,
since upon their determination the probable location, extent, and distri¬
bution of the ore in the regions as yet unexplored is largely dependent.

For this determination an accurate location of the various drifts, not
only with reference to the mining property on which they have been
driven, but with regard to the topographical features of the regions,
was quite indispensable. It was a work the magnitude of which could
not be foreseen and which was necessarily very expensive, since it prac¬
tically involved making a large map of the underground workings of the
whole region. In gathering material for this map I was most cordially
assisted by the various mine owners of Leadville, wdio were flattering
in their appreciation of the value of the work formerly done by the Sur¬
vey in this region upon which their explorations since its completion
had been based. Especial acknowledgments are due to Messrs. A. A.
Blow and Charles J. Moore, mining engineers, who have studied closely
the geological structure, as disclosed by successive mine openings made in
the last ten years. To the latter was intrusted the delicate and labo¬
rious task of compiling, connecting, reducing to common scale, and plat¬
ting upon the general maps, the principal underground workings of the
various mines.

In gathering my data I was faithfully assisted, to the extent of their
ability, by my stenographer, Mr. H, B, Hitz, and by Mr. McCulloch,
12 GiEOL - 7

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

mining student at the Washington University of St. Louis. During the
last weeks of September I had also the valuable assistance of Mr. W.
Cross, who, at my request, made a brief petrographical examination of
the eruptive bodies of Breece Hill, the only part of the region where our
previous geological determinations will require any essential modifica¬
tions.

As the gathering of the data for the map could not be completed dur¬
ing the summer, it has been continued during the winter by Mr. Moore,
at such times as could be spared from his professional duties; and the
additional information thus obtained has been from time to time incor¬
porated upon the general map. From this map I am constructing un¬
derground sections which are subject to modification with each contribu¬
tion of new material. Hence I have been unable in the press of other
duties to complete, as I had hoped to do, sufficient graphical data upon
which to base the principal additions and modifications of the original
report which are required, and the generalizations to be deduced there¬
from with regard to the theory of ore deposition in the district, and the
best methods for explorations of new ground. As this report can hardly
be made ready for publication during the next summer it may be
found advisable for me to make another brief visit to the district to
gather some additional data before the final writing up of my report.

Elsewhere. — Mr. Whitman Cross spent the months of July, August,
September, and a part of October in gathering additional data in fields
already examined. These were : In the Denver Basin region during the
first half of July; at Canyon City with Mr. Stanton determining points
of the structural geology, July 15-17 ; at Silver Cliff, July 17 to 25, and
one week in September, studying points in structural geology suggested
by office work, and the openings afforded by the deep shaft of the Se¬
curity mine; July 26 to September 5 in the Gunnison region, studying
geological problems suggested by office work, and determining the geo¬
logical horizon of supposed rich ore deposits newly discovered in the
Tin Cup district; and the last half of September at Leadville, and in
October in the Middle Park, examining deposits supposed to correspond
to those in the Denver Basin. This last examination was cut short by
early snow-falls.

Mr. G. H. Eldridge spent the greater part of the months of September
and October in Colorado; 1st, in studying the recent economic develop¬
ments in the Denver Basin, especially with regard to coal, clays, and
building stones; 2d, in bringing the data on artesian wells up to date;
3d, in making an examination of the Florence oil field near Canyon City.

Mr. T. W. Stanton was allowed by Dr. C. A. White to make for me,
in the month of July, a further study of the Paleozoic strata exposed at
Canyon City with especial reference to the occurrence there of fish
remains in strata of Lower Silurian age, a lower geological horizon than
any in which they had hitherto been recognized.

EMMONS.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

OFFICE WORK.

The office work of the various members of the division has consisted
in the preparation of the following memoirs, now in different stages of
readiness for the press:

First. Beport upon the Geology of the Ten-Mile and Silver Cliff min-
ing districts.

Second. Beport upon the Geology of the Denver Coal Basin.

Third. Beport upon the geology of the Southern Elk Mountains.

Fourth. Supplementary report upon the geology of the Leadville dis¬
trict.

Mr. Cross has completed his portion of the two first named reports
and is now occupied upon the study of eruptive phenomena of the region
covered by the third.

Mr. Eldridge has been mainly occupied upon the preparation of his
portion of the Denver Basin report, but has also laid down the geologi¬
cal outlines of sedimentary formations upon the map to accompany the
third report. In the month of January, 1891, he was temporarily de¬
tailed from this division, and put in charge of an investigation of the
phosphate deposits of Florida, upon which he was engaged until the
middle of May.

I myself have been mainly occupied upon general chapters of the first
report and upon graphical studies for the supplementary report on
Leadville.

OCCASIONAL PUBLICATIONS.

The following papers embodying results of immediate interest have
been published during the year by members of this division:

Proc. Col. Sci. Soc., 1890. “Geological sketch of the Bosita Hills,
Custer County, Colorado,” by W. Cross.

Amer. Jour. Sci., June, 1891. “On Alunite and Diaspore from the
Bosita Hills, Colorado,” by W. Cross.

Bull. Phil. Soc. Wash. Vol. xi, June, 1891. “Constitution and origin
of splierulites in acid eruptive rocks,” by W. Cross.

Very respectfully,

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist .

S. F. Emmons,

Geologist in charge.

100

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

REPORT OF MR. J. S. DILLER.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Cascade Division,
Washington , D. 6'., June 30 , 1891.

Sir: Herewith I have the honor to submit the annual report of work
done by the Cascade Division during the fiscal year ending June 30,
1801.

FIELD WORK.

Accompanied by Mr. J. Stanley-Brown, I left Washington, District
of Columbia, July 1, 1890, and proceeded to Astoria, Oregon, where a
day was spent studying the sandstone dikes discovered and described
by Prof. James D. Dana while engaged upon the Wilkes exploring ex¬
pedition in 1843. This study was made for the purpose of comparing
the sandstone dikes about the mouth of the Columbia with the extensive
series we had discovered in the Sacramento Valley of California.

At Riddles, Oregon, 4 days were spent with Mr. W. Q. Brown exam¬
ining the fossiliferous Cretaceous strata of the region to determine their
relation to one another, to the metamorphic rocks, and to the eruptive

masses with which they are associated.

The field material having been removed from Ashland, Oregon, to
Red Bluff, California, a party was organized at the latter place, and,
with the necessary camp outfit and supplies to subsist the party for a
month, proceeded to Susanville by way of Lassen Peak and the Cinder
Cone to obtain photographs for illustrating a forthcoming report.

While surveying the Lassen Peak district in 1885-’S6, a reconnais¬
sance was made of a portion of the Honey Lake region, but the field
was not entered for regular cartographic work until July, 1890. At
Susanville the party divided, and Mr. Stanley-Brown, with a wagon,
camping outfit, and two men, made a preliminary survey of the country
northeast of Susan River as far as Surprise Valley and the Warner
range, returning to Susanville in the latter part of August. While on
the trip he ascended the following prominent peaks — Hot Springs, Ob¬
servation, Hat, Eagle, Cottonwood, Cedar, Fandango, Warner, and
Bidwell — and made a large collection of the eruptive rocks of the region.

Later in the season Mr. Stanley-Brown began detailed cartographic
work between Susanville and Eagle Lake, and with Dr. W. H. Dali
joined in a search for fossils in the supposed Miocene strata about the
northern end of the Sierras.

July 28, without a camping outfit and relying upon the hospitality of
the people, I began cartographic work upon the eastern escarpment of
the northern end of the Sierras, and soon crossed over to study the fos¬
siliferous rocks in the neighborhood of Indian and Genesee Valleys. I
was greatly assisted by Mr. Cooper Curtice, who had already spent some

DILLER.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

101

time in that region and collected a large number of fossils. He worked
much of the time within the Paleozoic portion of the section, to which
his investigations have made very important additions, greatly aiding
in the analysis of the complicated stratigraphy.

From August 23 to September 14 I had the valuable association and
cooperation of Prof. Alpheus Hyatt, who made large collections of fos¬
sils from the numerous horizons within the Jura-Trias while I studied
the stratigraphy. It was soon found that the scale of the topographic
map — 4 miles to 1 inch — was entirely inadequate to admit of the desir¬
able detail in mapping the various geologic formations. On this account
more attention was devoted to the general features of the country, to
prepare the way for definite cartographic work when a new topographic
map on a sufficiently large scale should be prepared. The importance
of this field as a source of knowledge concerning the paleontology and
stratigraphy of the rocks composing the Sierras can scarcely be over¬
estimated.

Immediately after the departure of Prof. Hyatt, I was joined by Dr.
W. H. Dali and Mr. Stanley-Brown’s party. In certain deposits having
a wide distribution upon the Sierras between Honey Lake and Indian
Y alley Miocene plants occur quite abundantly. The object of our search
in these strata was to discover animal remains affording supplementary
evidence concerning their age. We examined the rocks at four widely
separated localities, but failed to find the desired fossils.

The party disbanded and returned to Washington, District of Colum¬
bia, October 20.

Accompanied by Mr. E. G. Paul I, again left Washington June 2, 1891,
for field work in northern California. En route I visited Shoshone Falls
of Snake River in Idaho, and I stopped also at Riddles, Oregon, for the
purpose of initiating regular geologic field work in that region by Mr. W.
Q. Brown. Mr. Brown having previously done considerable work in the
valley of Cow Creek, which lies just outside of the district covered by
the topographic maps of the Geological Survey, we proceeded south¬
eastward from the unaltered rocks of the Shasta group, across the belt
of the metamorphics forming the Rogue River Mountains, to the Chico
sandstones and shales of Grave Creek. Beginning at the California
line, Mr. Brown then took up the Ashland district of Rogue River Val¬
ley, and continued work in that region until the close of the fiscal year.

From Ashland, Oregon, I went to Taylorsville, California, where the
remainder of the fiscal year was spent at regular cartographic work upon
the area covered by the special topographic maps at that time in course
of preparation by Mr. A. F. Dunnington.

OFFICE WORK.

Aside from the administrative and other duties connected with the
petrographic laboratory, to which reference will be made, much of my
time during the winter was devoted to the elaboration of field notes and

102

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

studying the collections made during the last field season in northern
California.

At the request of Dr. C. A. White I prepared and published in the
American Journal of Science, December, 1890, volume 40, pages 476-
478, a brief note on the measured sections of Cretaceous rocks upon the
northwestern border of the Sacramento Valley.

With the assistance of Mr. De Lancey Gill I completely revised the
illustrations of Bulletin 79. The proof has since been read, and the
bulletin will be issued in a few weeks.

During the winter Mr. Stanley-Brown was engaged chiefly in plotting
his observations and studying his collections. He carefully investigated
a fine specimen of bernardinite, and prepared a paper which was read
before the Philosophical Society of Washington and afterward published
in the American Journal of Science for 1891, volume 42, pages 46-50
He examined and described a specimen of gold-bearing sand collected
by Mr. Bussell in Alaska, and the results of his study are published as
Appendix C to Mr. Bussell’s report in the National Geographic Maga¬
zine, volume 3, 1891, pages 196-198.

Early in May Mr. Stanley-Brown was appointed special agent of the
Treasury Department to visit the seal islands of Alaska, and tempora¬
rily left the Geological Survey.

PETROGRAPHIC LABORATORY.

While in the office most of my attention has been devoted to the af¬
fairs connected with the petrographic laboratory. Three lines of work
have been carried on: (1) The preparation of the Educational Series of
rocks, (2) the examination of specimens sent to the laboratory for de¬
termination, and (3) the preparation of thin sections and polished speci¬
mens of rocks for study.

The preparation of the Educational Series of rocks has steadily pro¬
gressed. Two hundred and fifty specimens of each of the following
kinds of. rocks have been added to the series within the fiscal year:
Breccia from seven miles northeast of Leesburg, Virginia; small diabase
dike from Williamsons Point, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania; sericite
schist from Ladiesburg, Frederick County, Maryland; quartz schist
from Setter’s Bidge, Baltimore County, Maryland; vein quartz from
Castleton, Harford County, Maryland; silicified wood from the Yellow¬
stone National Park ; chalk and flint from near Austin, Texas, and ar¬
gillite with roofing slate from Monson, Maine.

I desire to acknowledge the valuable aid rendered by Dr. George II.
Williams in procuring the specimens in Maryland, by Mr. F. II. Knowl-
ton in collecting the silicified wood, by Prof. B. T. Hill in obtaining the
chalk and flint, by Prof. W. S. Bayley, and especially by Mr. J. B. Mat¬
thews in presenting a series of well trimmed specimens of argillite and
roofing slate.

All of the material from Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania was

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

DILLER.]

103

collected by Mr. W. S. Hunnell alone, excepting' the breccia, in which
he was assisted by Mr. Paul.

Arrangements are being made for the collection of syenite, hematite,
brick clay, hornfels, and stalactites, which, with a few others already
provided for. will complete the series. About 5,000 of the specimens
previously collected were trimmed, chiefly by Mr. Hunnell, and a much
larger number were marked and prepared for final numbering.

The preparation of the bulletin to accompany the Educational Series
of rocks is well advanced. In this I am greatly assisted by Messrs. W.
S. Bayley, J. P. Iddings, Whitman Cross, George H. Williams, J. E.
Wolff, Waldemar Lindgren, J. Francis Williams, and F„ H. Knowlton,
who are describing the rocks which were collected in their respective
fields of study. My acknowledgments are especially due to Mr. W.
Merriam, of Madison, Wisconsin, who has taken a series of photographs
for illustrating the bulletin, and to Prof. F. W. Clarke, chief chemist of
the Geological Survey, for a large number of analyses of rock.

Among the various rock specimens submitted to the petrographic
laboratory for study and report or suggestion, may be mentioned a frag¬
ment from a sandstone dike in Texas, sent by Prof. R. T. Hill ; a remark¬
ably interesting micaceous peridotitic rock from the Flannary dike,
Crittenden County, Kentucky, sent by Mr. E. O. Uhlricli, of the Ken¬
tucky Geological Survey; several eruptive rocks of New York, by Prof.
J. F. Kemp; basalt from the guano deposits of the West Indies, by Prof.
C. H. Hitchcock ; supposed auriferous and argentiferous perlite from the
Black Rock, Nevada, by Mr. E. V. Spencer; banded barite, by Prof. C.
Luedeking; numerous specimens of travertine from New Mexico, by Hon.
A. Joseph, and a collection of lava and other rocks made by Prof. Cleve¬
land Abbe, of the Weather Bureau, and Mr. E. D. Preston, of the Coast
and Geodetic Survey, while engaged upon the scientific expedition to
the west coast of Africa.

Mr. W. S. Hunnell has had immediate charge of much of the work of
the petrographic laboratory, especially the preparation of thin sections
by Messrs. Herman Ohm, Fred. Ohm, and Paul. During the year 4,853
thin sections, some of which were extra large, were made in the labora¬
tory. I11 doing this work G80 specimens were sawed and 40 specimens
were sawed and polished.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

J. S. Dilleb,

Geologist in charge.

Mr. G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

104

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

RFPORT OF MR. G. F BECKER.

U. S. Geological Survey,

California Division,

San Francisco , Cal., July 1, 1891.

Sir : During the fiscal year 1890-91 the operations of the California
Division have lain mainly in the Gold Belt of California, or on the
western slope of the Sierra Nevada, between the parallels of 37° 30'
and 40°. The entire region under investigation comprises twenty atlas
sheets on a scale of 1 : 125,000.

Messrs. Turner and Lindgren have continued to devote themselves
chiefly to the areal geology of this region, as in former years. They
have accumulated a vast mass of data as to the distribution of the
rocks throughout the entire region, maps of the Wheeler Survey having
been used to record explorations in advance of the preparation of con¬
tour maps. The work is farthest advanced, however, in that part of
the area which possesses the greatest industrial importance, and seven
of the sheets are now so nearly completed that 1 hope to submit them
for publication at the close of the present field season. The Marysville
sheet is substantially finished; the Nevada City and the Colfax sheets
are in a very advanced condition; and the Truckee sheet, which is
relatively simple, is partly done. These four sheets are on the same
west to east tier. The Sacramento and the Placerville sheets, which
lie directly south of the foregoing, are almost finished, and work on the
Jackson sheet (next south of the riacerville) is progressing rapidly.
Portions of several other sheets are fully mapped, but none excepting
those enumerated above can be completed for publication this autumn.
We hope to be able hereafter to present three or four sheets for publi¬
cation each winter until that portion of the work is done.

To a certain extent any sheets of the Gold Belt map which maybe
published at present will be subject to correction. The geological areas
will be as accurately outlined as the scale of the map will permit, but
the nomenclature adopted cannot be regarded as final. This is due to
the imperfection of the paleontological evidence throughout the region.
Fossils are extremely rare, and when they are found they are very apt to
turn out too imperfect for identification or to belong to undescribed
species or sometimes to represent animals with so great a time range
as to deprive them of much value for the classification of the strata in
which they occur. This uncertainty extends even to the auriferous
gravels, which, though deposited for the most part before the glaciation
of the Sierra began, may yet prove to be in part coeval with the Qua¬
ternary of the Eastern States. On the maps now in preparation the
commencement of glaciation is assumed as coincident with the begin¬
ning of the Quaternary. Should this assumption prove fallacious, any
exact delineation of the Pleistocene on our maps would appear hopeless.

BECKER.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

105

Iii order to reduce the uncertainties of classification to a minimum, I
have availed myself of the services of an expert collector in addition to
the regular members of my division. Dr. Cooper Curtice, who was for
some time a member of Mr. Walcott’s division, has spent three months
during the year in portions of the Gold Belt where discoveries of fossils
might be hoped for, devoting himself exclusively to the search for
organic remains. A fair measure of success has attended his efforts
particularly in Plumas County. Within the last month he has also
made important discoveries near Auburn.

During the last season my own attention was devoted to several of
the problems arising in the study of the Gold Belt. One of these is the
division of the Shasta group of the Cretaceous, and allusion was made
to it in my last annual report. My conclusions Avere communicated
last winter to the Geological Society in a paper discussing the relative
age of the Aucella- bearing beds of Mariposa, of similar beds of the
Coast Ranges, of the beds of Cottonwood Creek in Shasta County, and of
beds of the Queen Charlotte Islands studied by Messrs. Dawson and
Wliiteaves, and comparing them with the European Gault.1 I also exam¬
ined into the subject of the occurrence of human remains beneath Tuol¬
umne, Table Mountain, and became acquainted with two important pieces
of evidence theretofore unpublished. This evidence I have announced in
a paper reviewing the entire subject, especially the question of authen¬
ticity and the age of the gravels.2

I spent the greater part of the last season in an investigation of the
structure of the Sierra. Thepelinomena which received most attention
Avere the numbreless faults by which the higher portion of the range
is traversed. They Avere found to admit of classification into definite
systems and to indicate the direction of the forces which produced
them. This study has been published, and, in connection with it, the
modeling of the range was also discussed.3

During the Avinter my attention was mainly given to experiments de¬
signed further to elucidate the action of rock masses under intense stress,
such as that to Avhich the mass of the Sierra has been subjected. The
discussion of these experiments is not yet completed.

The month of June I have spent in studying the late formations of the
Sacramento Valley. A portion of the gravels of the lowest foot hills
are later than the beginning of glaciation on the Sierra, and careful
study has been needful to ascertain how to draw the line between them
and the adjoining older deposits. At the same time I have taken up the
study of the so-called ferruginous “hardpan,” an impervious and most
deleterious subsoil Avidely distributed in the eastern Sacramento Valley.

•Notes on the early Cretaceous of California and Oregon, by George F. Becker. Bull. Geol. Soc.
Amer., vol. 2, pp. 201-208.

'•Antiquities from under Tuolumne Table Mountain in California, by George F. Becker. Bull.
Geol. Soc. Amer., vol. 2, pp. 189-200.

3Tlie structure of a portion of the Sierra Nevada of California, by George F. Becker. Bull. Geol.
Soc. Amer., vol. 2, pp. 49-74.

106

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

I have hopes that its geological and chemical investigation may lead to
at least a partial remedy.

Mr. Turner has published an interesting study of the lake beds at
Mohawk on the middle fork of the Feather River, discussing their rela¬
tions to the great andesite eruptions and describing the system of faults
by which they are intersected.1 lie also published a paper on the geol¬
ogy of Monte Diablo, describing its sedimentary and eruptive rocks and
exhibiting their structure and distribution.2

Mr. Lindgren published the results of an investigation on the lithology
of the High wood Mountains in Montana, which was begun some years
ago under the Northern Transcontinental Survey. The most important
part of this paper is the description of a remarkable eruptive rock of
Cretaceous age.3

Yours respectfully,

G. F. Becker,
Geologist in charge.

G. K. Gilbert,

Chief Geologist.

REPORT OF' MR. C. D. WALCOTT.

IT. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Paleozoic Invertebrate Paleontology",

Washington , 7). C., July 1, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to present the following report of operations
conducted under my charge during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1891 :

The personnel of the division consisted of Prof. Joseph F. James, Mr.
Ira Sayles, and Mr. John W. Gentry, assistant paleontologists. Be¬
sides these, Mr. William P. Rust and Mr. S. Ward Loper were employed
as field collectors and temporary laboratory assistants and Prof. Henry
S. Williams, of Cornell University, was, as heretofore, attached to the
division in connection with a special investigation on the Devonian and
Carboniferous groups.

FIELD WORK.

The field operations for the year were (1) the study by Prof. Wil¬
liams of the Upper Devonian and the Lower Carboniferous horizons
of northern Arkansas; (2) a study of the stratigraphy and the col¬
lection of the faunas of the Lower Paleozoic rocks of the northern por¬
tion of the valley of Lake Champlain; (3) a study of the Lower Paleozoic
rocks in the vicinity of Canyon City, Colorado; (4) a study of a section
of the Devonian and Carboniferous rocks near Keyser, Mineral County,
West Virginia; (5) an examination of certain formations in eastern

1 Mohawk lake beds. Bull. Pbil. Soc. Wash., vol. 11, p. 385.

2 The geology of Mount Diablo, California. Bull. Geol. Soc. Amer., vol. 11, p. 383, with maps.

s Eruptive rocks from Montana, by Waldomar Lindgren. Proc. Cal. Acad. Sci., ser. 2, vol. 3, pp. 41-57.

WALCOTT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

107

Rensselaer County and the northern part of Washington County, New
York; (6) the collection of fossils from the Lower Paleozic in central
Kentucky.

Prof. Williams’s field work was limited to the special study, during
August and September, of the Upper Silurian and Lower Carbonifer¬
ous formations of Arkansas, with the view of determining their
limit and the presence or absence of the Devonian group in this area.
Mr. Ira Sayles was engaged in collecting from the Devonian rocks of
southern New York, and, in May and June, he measured a section of
the Devonian rocks in the vicinity of Keyser, Mineral County, West
Virginia, and made a large collection of fossils therefrom under the
direction of Prof. Henry S. Williams. Mr. Stuart Weller was engaged
in collecting Silurian and Devonian fossils in northern Arkansas and
Mr. Hilbert Van Ingen, in southwestern Missouri, for Prof. Williams.

I accompanied Profs. Pumpelly and V an Hise when making an exam¬
ination, in July, of the contacts of the Cambrian and Algonkian rocks
near Port Ann, Washington County, New York, and of the Algonkian
rocks that extend west of Lake George and north as far as Westport,
in the Lake Champlain Valley, New York. Prof. Van Hise and myself
then proceeded to St. Albans, Vt., to study the Lower Cambrian sec¬
tions of the township of Georgia. The examination of the Lower
Paleozoic rocks in the vicinity of the Canadian and United States
boundary, in September, where Messrs. Loper and Rust were making
extensive collections of fossils, was followed by a study of a measured
section of the Lower Cambrian rocks near North Granville, New York.

A detailed study was made, during the month of December, of the
Lower Silurian (Ordovician) section northwest of Canyon City, Colorado,
for the purpose of obtaining accurate data upon the geologic position
of the oldest vertebrate fossil remains known, and in May, 1891, an ex¬
amination was made, in connection with Mr. T. Nelson Dale, of Prof.
Pumpelly’s division, of the Berlin Grit area of eastern Rensselaer County,
New York, and, by myself, of a section in the roofing-slate area in the
northern portion of Washington County, New York.

Prof. Joseph F. James made a collection of fossils from the Trenton
Limestone series in northern central Kentucky, and also examined the
rocks of the Cincinnati terrane on the Ohio River.

Mr. William P. Rust was employed as a collector in central New
York, also in the upper and lower Champlain Valleys and, in the spring
of 1891, at the celebrated Paradoxides locality at Braintree, Mass. Mr.
S. Ward Loper also made extensive collections from the Lower Paleo¬
zoic, near the Canadian and United States boundary, in northern
Vermont.

OFFICE WORK.

The principal work of Prof. Williams was the completion of the cor¬
relation essay upon the Devonian and Carboniferous groups. This was
transmitted and sent in for publication in February and in June he was

108

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

engaged in reading the proof. Prof. Williams also made a report to the
State geologist of Arkansas upon the Carboniferous material received
from him, and a report to Prof. Satford, of Tennessee, upon the question
of the geological and paleontological transition from the Silurian to the
Carboniferous rocks in Tennessee. This includes the study of the col¬
lections obtained by him in northern Arkansas, and the material received
from the State surveys of Missouri and Tennessee.

The reading of the proof of the paper upon “The Olenellus Zone in
North America,” in the Tenth Annual Report, occupied much of my time
during July and August. This, in connection with the correlation
essay upon the Cambrian group, was the chief office work up to the 1st
of March, when the latter was finally transmitted for publication.

In compliance with instructions received from you I left Washington
March 5 and proceeded to Ithaca, New York, to examine the collections
belonging to the Geological Survey in charge of Prof. Williams, of Cor¬
nell University. I then went on to Albany, New York, to study some of
the collections of the State Museum, and thence to Cambridge, Massa¬
chusetts, where I examined the material of the Geological Survey in the
charge of Prof. Alpheus Hyatt, and Prof. S. II. Sciulder. I next visited
New Haven, Connecticut, and made a similar examination of the mate¬
rial in charge of Prof. O. C. Marsh. In New York I visited the School
of Mines, Columbia College, for the purpose of examining the material
in the charge of Prof. J. S. Newberry, but owing to his absence in the
South I was unable to learn very much of it from his assistants. Each
of the gentlemen mentioned gave me every facility for examining the
collections in their charge, and explained to me their method of record¬
ing the material so as to distinguish it from that belonging to their
respective museums or to private individuals.

The collections in charge of Prof. H. S. Williams are in the museum
building of Cornell University. They are arranged in two rooms in
trays and cases, and so separated from the collections of the university
that they can be readily distinguished from the latter. Even if the speci¬
mens are mixed in trays with specimens belonging to the university or
private individuals, for purposes of study or comparison, a distinct green
label with its record number readily distinguishes those belonging to the
Survey from those of the university, etc. The record numbers, placed
upon each green label, were assigned to Prof. Williams from the Geolog¬
ical Survey and National Museum catalogues. Prof. Williams has pre¬
pared a card catalogue of all the numbers that he has used, that gives
the record of locality, geological formation, collector, date of collecting,
and any information that he has relating to the geographic and geologic
position of the specimen. A copy of this card catalogue is being pre¬
pared to be filed with the records of the Geological Survey.

There are now in Prof. Williams’s charge 500 drawers of fossils, the
drawers averaging in size 2 feet by 1 foot 0 inches and 3 to 4 inches
deep. There are also 13 boxes of duplicates packed and ready for ship¬
ment to the Survey whenever they may be required.

WALCOTT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

109

The collections in charge of Prof. Alpheus Hyatt, at Cambridge, Mas¬
sachusetts, are arranged in drawers in a room entirely devoted to their
keeping in his private house. The collections belonging to institutions
or individuals which are used in the course of his study are kept in an¬
other room on the floor above. The collections are in good order, and
when it is desired they can readily be taken charge of by the oflieers of
the Survey. The method of recording the specimens is the same as
that used by several of the paleontologists of the Survey at Washing¬
ton, and consists of a round green or yellow label, which is numbered
and fastened to the specimen to indicate geographic location and geo¬
logic formation, when the latter is known.

The material in Prof. Hyatt’s charge is contained in about titty drawers
and includes the collections made since 1888. A copy of Prof. Hyatt’s
record book will be filed with the Survey.

The collections in charge of Prof. H. S. Scudder are kept in special
cases in the laboratory building back of his dwelling house. The speci¬
mens are recorded by painting numbers with white paint upon each
specimen, which refer to a catalogue kept in a Geological Survey rec¬
ord book. The number of specimens recorded to date is 1,158, and there
is a small collection from Florissant, Colorado, not recorded, which will
probably bring up the total to 2,000 specimens. There is also some
material from the Hayden Survey that will be transferred to the record
of the Geological Survey.

The large collections of vertebrate remains in charge of Prof. O. C.
Marsh, at New Haven, Connecticut, are kept in the fire-proof Peabody
Museum building and in a large storage shed adjoining. The method
of recording is somewhat different from the other collections, but it is
very thorough and complete.

In the field where the specimens are collected a label is placed inside
of each box as it is packed. On this “U. S. Geological Survey” is
printed in bold letters. On the outside of the box “U. S. Geological
Survey” is plainly marked before it is shipped. When received at
Prof. Marsh’s laboratory, in New Haven, a record is made of each box
received, and to each an entry number is assigned. This number is at
once recorded on the box and, when the box is opened, on the label and
on each and every specimen contained in the box with an oil paint.
When it is necessary* to remove a number, in working out specimens,
from the matrix, the number is copied on some other portion of the rock
or directly on the fossil before it is removed from the other portion.
This number is the record of locality, stratigraphic position, and history
of discovery ; additional information is added from time to time under
the number in the record book. This includes the identification of the
genus and species and any data that may be of importance. The
removal of the number from any specimen at once deprives it largely
of scientific value, and it is to the interest of every one working on the
collections to have it kept intact. When the final work is done and the

110

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

specimen is identified, labeled with its name, and ready for exhibition,
it receives a catalogue number. The old number, however, still follows
it in the record of the latter.

The record of the entry numbers is kept in duplicate, and Prof. Marsh
is now preparing another duplicate set, to be filed with the Geological
Survey. This will show the number of boxes of specimens received from
1882 to 1891. The laboratories and storage room* provided by the Yale
University Museum represent a floor space of over 9,000 square feet, for
which the Geological Survey does not pay rent. In addition to the col¬
lections at New Haven there are seventy boxes of vertebrate fossils
stored in the Armory building in Washington and a collection is now
being prepared for exhibition in the U. S. National Museum.

I visited the School of Mines, New York City, where the collections
in charge of Prof. J. S. Newberry are kept; but, owing to his severe ill¬
ness and absence in the South, I was unable to obtain any data upon
which to base a report. He has in his charge the Hayden collection ot
fossil plants from Florence, Colorado, which contains about 1,000 speci¬
mens, also a large lot of Puget Sound plants, and the collection made by
Dr. C. A. White and Maj. J. W. Powell, in the Green River group.

The collection of fossil plants in charge of Prof. Wm. M. Fontaine,
of the University of Virginia, is now being packed by him, and will
be shipped to the Survey within a short time.

The result of my observations, as a whole, indicates that the collections
in the charge of paleontologists not in the city of Washington are in
good condition, and in the event of the death or disability of the persons
in whose charge they are could be readily identified, packed, and shipped
to the Geological Survey at Washington.

Considerable time was given during the last three months of the year to
the preparation of a paper for the Twelfth Annual Report entitled “The
North American continent during Cambrian time” and the latter part
of June to reading the proof of the correlation essay upon the Cambrian
group. Attention was given to questions relating to the administrative
work of the paleontological branch during the months of J uly, August,
March, and June.

The routine work of the office and laboratory was attended to during
the year, and a number of small collections were examined and reported
upon to the geologists of the Survey. In addition to this, a large col¬
lection of Lower Paleozoic fossils from Canyon City, Colorado, was exam¬
ined and notes taken for a report, and a large collection of fossils, that
had been made by Mr. William P. Rust in the States of New York and
Vermont, was examined and a study series selected therefrom, the
remainder being packed and placed in storage, owing to the crowded
condition of the laboratory.

A considerable amount of work was done by Mr. S. Ward Loper in
the preparation of a series of Lower Paleozoic fossils for study and also
for exhibition at the meeting of the International Geological Congress

HYATT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

Ill

next August. Mr. Loper was employed until May in this and in the
preparation of the material that he collected during the held season for
study. Mr. William P. Rust worked out the material collected by him
in the lower Champlain Valley, and transmitted to the laboratory, in
February, 1,557 specimens prepared for study from the Calciferous and
Chazy zones and 225 specimens from the Trenton limestone of Central
New York.

Prof. Joseph F. James was engaged in assisting me in various ways
in the preparation of the correlation essay after his return from the field
to the 1st of March, when he was transferred to the Geological Survey
library, where he assisted in reading the proof of the correlation essay
that was received during June.

During the year two papers, growing out of the general studies of the
division, were published, viz : u Description of new forms of Upper Cam¬
brian fossils” (Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 13, 1890, pp. 267-279, Pis. xx,
xxi); “ The fauna of the Lower Cambrian or Olenellus zone” (U. S. Geol.
Survey, Tenth Ann. Rep., 1888-89. Part i. Geology, pp. 509-658;
colored map, text illustrations, 69 figures, and Pis. xliii-xcviii ; pub¬
lished in 1890).

Very respectfully,

Chas. D. Walcott,

Paleontologist in charge.

lion. J. W. Powell,

Director.

REPORT OF PROF. ALPHEUS HYATT.

U. S Geological Survey,

Division of Lower Mesozoic Paleontology,

Cambridge , Massachusetts , June 30, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to report that in accordance with instructions
received from you I proceeded to Taylorsville, Lassen County, California,
in August, 1890, to cooperate with Mr. J. S. Diller in the exploration of
Mount Jura and the immediate vicinity, and remained there collecting
and observing from August 23 until September 15. We obtained over
2,000 pounds of fossils, and found several distinct horizons besides those
mentioned in previous reports as occurring in the Trias and Jura at this
place. Four large boxes of fossils that were received by me at Cambridge
about December 1, 1890, have been unpacked, labels secured, all speci¬
mens trimmed, and a considerable number of species identified.

Dr. Cooper Curtice, of Dr. Becker’s division, visited the same locality
before I arrived at Taylorsville and collected largely from some of the
same horizons. These fossils were generously placed at my disposal and
have been labeled and incorporated with the other collections. They
have added largely to our materials and contain some species not previ¬
ously obtained, as well as some remarkably fine fossils.

112

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

The work of revising, naming, and describing the Triassic fossils from
near Soda Springs, Idaho, has also been carried forward and the larger
part of these are ready for publication.

The geological sections made in San Miguel County, New Mexico, in
1889, have been drawn out, corrected, and placed in color upon a single
sheet ready for engraving, and also the descriptive text for them com¬
plete. The work of naming and describing the fossils progressed
rapidly in the early part of the year and most of the species were de¬
scribed. This work was laid aside for a time on account of the impor¬
tance and pressing requirements of the work on the fossils from Mount
Jura, but has been resumed and is now making good progress.

The foreign collections in the Museum of Comparative Zoology, the use
of which has been kindly permitted by the director, Mr. Alexander
Agassiz, have been of important assistance for the comparison of species
and the determination of the comparative age of faunas.

Respectfully submitted.

Alpheus Hyatt,
Paleontologist in charge.

Hon. J. W. Rowell,

Director.

REPORT MR. C. A. WHITE.

IT. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Upper Mesozoic Paleontology,

Washington , D. C., July 1 , 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit the following report of the operations
of this division for the year ended June 30, 1891.

OFFICE WORK.

From July 1, 1890, 1 was occupied in the preparation of a work, begun
a comde of years previously, entitled “A Review of the Cretaceous
Formations of North America,” the finished manuscript of which was
delivered at your office upon February 10, 1891. This is one of a series
having special reference to the correlation with one another of all the
geological formations of North America, which have been prepared in
accordance with the plan outlined by you.

The scope of my work embraces a discussion of all the North Amer¬
ican formations which have by any author been referred to the Creta¬
ceous system, and therefore certain formations at the base and top of
the system respectively are included, although the opinion of geologists
is divided concerning their Cretaceous age, and although some of those
formations are discussed by the respective authors of the memoirs in
this series which relate to the immediately preceding and succeeding
systems.

WHITE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

113

Upon completion of the manuscript for the forementioned work I began
the preparation of another upon the Laramie and related formations.
These formations occur in various parts of the great interior portion of
the continent and are known from northern Mexico to far within British
America. This work is in progress at the close of the present fiscal
year, but as it will require a considerable amount of investigation in the
field it probably can not be finished within two or three years.

Besides these labors a considerable portion of my time has been occu¬
pied in the examination of questions arising in connection with various
collections of fossils which have been sent to this division for investiga¬
tion and report, by different parties connected with the Survey and by
correspondents of the Survey and of the Smithsonian Institution, and
also in the consideration of questions pertaining to the preparation and
preservation of the fossils of the division.

The actual labor of the preparation and installation of these fossils
has largely fallen upon Mr. T. W. Stanton, and this has constituted a
large part of his office work during the last fiscal year. Besides the
preparation and installation of these fossils, which for many years have
accumulated in this division, Mr. Stanton lias given much attention to
their systematic study and specific identification, especially of the col¬
lections which he himself has made.

A large part of the fossils which have accumulated within the last
few years, as well as those already in possession of the U. S. National
Museum, have been by Mr. Stanton installed in its cases and recorded
in its record books. The fossil collections pertaining to this division are
therefore in a more accessible condition than they have heretofore been.
Besides these labors Mr. Stanton has devoted considerable time to the
preparation of a review of the invertebrate fauna of the Colorado divi¬
sion of the Cretaceous system as it is developed in the great interior
portion of this continent. It is expected that when finished this work
will be published as an illustrated bulletin of the Survey, and it is esti¬
mated that it will contain two or three hundred pages.

Besides the usual clerical work of the division and the important as-
assistance he has rendered to me in my labors, Dr. C. B. Boyle has
continued his work upon the bibliography of North American Mesozoic
invertebrate Paleontology, together with a catalogue of all the published
species. As the latter will contain an entry for every republication of
each species, as well as for the original description, the work will be a
comparatively large one. It is expected that it will be published as a
bulletin of the Survey, and that it will contain between 600 and 700
pages. This important work is now so far progressed that its publica¬
tion may be expected during the coming fiscal year.

Leonard A. White has been employed as a temporary assistant in this
division from January 29 to June 30, inclusive. He has been engaged
in assisting Mr. Stanton in the Museum work already mentioned, and in
giving general assistance in the clerical and routine work of tne division.

12 geol— — 8

114

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

FIELD WORK.

Although this division of the Survey is officially designated as a pale¬
ontological one, all its investigations are prosecuted with direct refer¬
ence to structural geology, especially to that which pertains to the
U nited States domain. In other words, its investigations are properly
geological, although they are prosecuted mainly from a biological stand¬
point. Therefore held work constitutes a large part of the labors per¬
formed by the members of the division, and all the plans for prosecuting
its work involve various journeys to the field and extended studies
there, as well as the collection of the fossil remains which faunally
characterize the respective formations under investigation. With these
objects in view several journeys have been made to the field within the
last fiscal year.

At the beginning of the fiscal year Mr. Stanton was already in the
field in Colorado, where he specially investigated the Colorado divi¬
sion of the Cretaceous system. His principal work was done in Huer¬
fano Park, but considerable work was also done at other localities in
Colorado. The principal results of this work will appear in his proposed
publication already mentioned.

At the request of Mr. S. F. Emmons, in charge of the division of the
Rocky Mountains, Mr. Stanton, while in Colorado, reexamined the sec¬
tion near Canyon City, which he had previously examined under the
direction of Mr. Emmons. It was among the fossil collections thus
obtained from these strata that Mr. Walcott reported the important
discovery of fish remains, mention of which is made in his administra¬
tive report for this fiscal year.

Mr. Stanton returned from his field work in Colorado on September 1
and resumed office work, but on October 5 he left Washington for field
work in Texas. This journey was undertaken for the purpose of con¬
tinuing the investigation of the upper portion of the marine Cretaceous
series there which I had prosecuted upon two former occasions. The
special object of his work was to study the stratigraphical relations of
the beds which bear the remains of a molluscan fauna which is closely
like that of the Ripley formation of Mississippi and Alabama, and to
make as full collectious as practicable of those fossils. This work being
satisfactorily performed he returned to Washington on November 19
and resumed his office work.

During the progress of my work on the North American Cretaceous
formations it became necessary to make some field observations in the
Atlantic border region. I therefore left Washington for that purpose
on October 6, visited various localities in Virginia and North Carolina,
and returned on the 20tli of the same month.

Having learned upon this journey that certain necessary observations
in North Carolina could be more advantageously made in winter, Mr.
Stanton left Washington for that purpose on January 20, completed his
observations there and returned on February 5.

DALL.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

115

In pursuance of my plan for further studies of the Cretaceous forma¬
tions of the Gulf States Mr. Stanton took the field in the region traversed
by the Chattahoochee River, leaving Washington on March 2 and re¬
turning on April 3.

On June 1 Mr. Stanton left Washington for field work in Colorado,
where he is engaged at the close of this fiscal year.

Respectfully submitted,

C. A. White,

Geologist in charge.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

REPORT OF MR. W. H. DALL.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Cenozoic Invertebrate Paleontology,

Washington , D. C., July 1, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit the following report on the work of
the divison of Cenozoic Paleontology during the fiscal year ended June
30, 1891.

The force of the division, besides occasional labor temporarily engaged
during field work, has included R. E. C. Stearns, Paleontologist, Gil¬
bert D. Harris, Assistant Paleontologist, and Mr. Frank Burns. These
persons have been continuously employed on field or office work during
the year.

OFFICE WORK.

Dr. Stearns has been chiefly engaged on the routine work, of which
he has had general supervision under my direction. Many of the letters
asking for information, of which a large number have been received,
have been referred to him for reply, and his familiarity with the recent
and Tertiary fauna of western America has rendered his services in this
very useful. Beside the time devoted to routine work Dr. Stearns has
been engaged in studying the invertebrate fossils of the Colorado desert
region, in which fair progress has been made.

The routine work of the division, as in former years, consists largely
of receiving, unpacking, cleaning, assorting, classifying, recording, nam¬
ing, labeling, cataloguing and arranging in order for easy reference the
fossils of Cenozoic age, and their related later forms, that have been col¬
lected by members of the Survey or presented by private individuals
interested in geology.

Another branch of the work consists in reporting on such specimens
as are brought in by members of the Survey desirous of knowing the
age of the strata from which they were obtained; or by private students
of paleontology desirous of knowing the names of their fossils ; or, lastly,

116

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

by tlie directors of the State surveys who desire to have the benefit of
comparison with typical collections, such as may be found in the Na¬
tional Museum.

The labor of furnishing information on these and cognate subjects to
inquirers from all parts of the country is serious and constantly increas¬
ing. In the year 1888-’89 forty-five such applications were made and
attended to; in 1889-’90, sixty-nine; in the year just ending the number
has mounted to one hundred and sixty-six. It is obvious that this
indicates a growing interest in the work the Survey has been doing; an
appreciation of the fact that information is available on application,
and, judging by the fact that most of the applications were free from
trifling or gross ignorance, an increase in the number of persons whom
the study of recent and fossil invertebrates attracts. I have always
felt that, so far as it could be done without neglect of necessary official
work, the furnishing of such data to inquirers was an important part
of the work of the division.

The material referred to the division for examination and report has
in all cases been promptly attended to, no arrears of current work
of this sort remaining at the end of the year. No account has been kept
of the identifications made for members of the Survey, but for outsiders
the number of species examined and identified is not less than 1,800 in
round numbers, and the notes thereon amount to between 600 and 700
pages of manuscript. The great amount of current work and of
absences on field work have prevented any great impression being made
on the large arrearages which existed before I took charge of this divi¬
sion. However, even on this line some progress lias been made.

In providing cases and material for handling and arranging the col¬
lections in question we are indebted to the National Museum, their ulti¬
mate custodian. The final registration of material since my last report
to date of writing was 5,700 entries, corresponding to about 17,500
specimens against 6,323 entries and 20,000 specimens during the year
1888-89, and about 6,000 entries during the preceding year, 1889-90.

As facilitating the work of the Survey in this direction I have, with
your permission, continued to act as honorary curator, Department of
Mollusks and Tertiary Fossils of the IT. S. National Museum, as for
many years past.

FIELD WORK.

Geological work in the field under the supervision of the chief geolo¬
gist has been actively pushed during the last year with valuable results.
On the 18th of August, 1890, I departed for field work in northern Cal¬
ifornia, returning to Washington, Oct. 21. During this interval, the
gravels of the Sierra were explored for fossils in cooperation with Dr.
J. S. Diller, who has been engaged in studying and mapping them. An
examination of the Tertiaries of Oregon, at Astoria, Eugene City, etc.,
with the kind cooperation of Prof. O. B. Johnson, of Seattle University,

DALL.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

117

and Prof. Tlios. Condon, of the State University of Oregon, yielded im¬
portant results in clearing np several previously doubtful questions as
to their aid and distribution. The rocks of the Chico group were
studied at Redding and those of the Sacramento Valley at Stockton
and vicinity, which afforded a good many new data, while interesting
results in the Livermore Valley were attained by the kind and generous
cooperation of Dr. Wm. Hammond, U. S. Army (retired).

In pursuance of the policy of exploring for typical fossils the classical
localities of the older paleontologists, Mr. Burns was sent to explore the
beds at Natural Well, Duplin County, North Carolina, from which
valuable geological data and a large mass of material were obtained
during the month of January, 1891.

To determine the age of the bone beds of South Florida, hitherto in
controversy, the writer visited that region in the month of January,
obtaining definite and conclusive observations as to their Pliocene
age. At the same time* numerous other mooted questions in regard to
Floridian geology were investigated.

In March Mr. Burns was directed to descend the Altamaha River,
Georgia, from the Eocene area to the end of the rock formation, with a
view of determining the age and boundaries of the wide-spread grits of
that river. They proved to be Miocene, analogous to the Grand Gulf
beds of Hilgard, and their transverse section was for the first time defi¬
nitely ascertained. Mr. Burns returned early in April, having been en¬
tirely successful in the mission intrusted to him.

In April Mr. G. D. Harris was detailed to accompany the State ex¬
pedition, under the auspices of Johns Hopkins University, directed by
Prof. IV. B. Clark, which visited many of the important Tertiary out¬
crops of the Maryland shore.

On the 26tli of May Messrs. Harris and Burns were directed to pro¬
ceed to Easton, Maryland, to examine the Tertiary rocks and obtain
specimens from the localities frequented by Conrad and the other older
paleontologists. The results of this expedition, though satisfactory, are
not yet reported on in detail, and a statement of them is therefore im¬
practicable at the present time.

During the last year, as for some time past, we have had the hearty
cooperation in the work of exploration of Messrs. T. H. Aldrich, of
Alabama, and Joseph Willcox, of Philadelphia, as well as several other
public-spirited private individuals.

SPECIAL RESEARCHES.

The work of preparing the Correlation Essay on the Plio-Miocene of
the United States has been carried to completion during the year. A
large part of the time of Mr. G. D. Harris and myself has been devoted
to this work, the manuscript and illustrations of which have been turned
in to the chief geologist. In addition to compiled material which has
involved a very great amount of labor, the report comprises a good deal

118

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

of fresh and unpublished material, especially in regard to Georgia,
Florida, California, Oregon, and Alaska Territory.

The printing of Part i of the writer’s report on the Tertiary Mollusks
of Florida, in progress at the time of his last report, was completed in
August, 1890, forming a small folio volume of 200 pages, with twelve
plates. The second part of this work is in preparation, and will, like
the first, be published by the Wagner Free Institute of Science, Phila¬
delphia.

A number of other short papers on the invertebrates of the United
States, bearing more or less directly upon our work, have been printed
by the writer, by Dr. R. E. C. Stearns, and by Mr. G. D. Harris in va¬
rious periodicals during the current year.

In conclusion I wish to bear testimony to the faithfulness, energy,
and intelligence with which the staff of the division without exception
have cooperated with me in pushing the progress of the work, improv¬
ing its quality, and increasing its quantity.

Very respectfully, Wm. H. Dall,

Paleontologist in charge.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

REPORT OF PROF. O. C. MARSH.

U. S. Geological Survey,
Division of Vertebrate Paleontology,

New Haven , Connecticut , June 30 , 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit the following report of the work of
this division during tlie last year:

In compliance with your letter of general instructions, I have contin¬
ued the work of collecting vertebrate fossils and investigating those of
special interest to science. This work has gone on sytematically and
with success during the year.

The field work of this division during the year has not been as extensive
as in previous years, but has been prosecuted with a view to supplement
the results attained during the two preceding seasons. Researches in
the Laramie have been continued systematically, especially to gain addi¬
tional information in regard to the remarkable development of reptilian
life that came to a close at the end of this period, and likewise to learn
more about the limited mammalian life that was contemporaneous with it.
The discoveries thus made in these two directions have been important,
and the collections secured are of great value to science. Among the
reptiles the gigantic Ceratopsuhe were the dominant forms during this
period, and the large number of remains secured, although as yet only par¬
tially investigated, have shown these animals to be among the strangest
forms of reptilian life yet discovered. They were so huge in size and
peculiar in structure and so abundant throughout the period in which

MARSH.

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

119

they lived that they make the deposits in which they are entombed one
of the most distinct horizons yet determined, and this fact alone renders
the investigations recently undertaken of importance to geologic science.
The other reptiles that lived with them serve to emphasize still more
clearly the prominent features of the reptilian age and the profound
climatic changes that brought this peculiar fauna to its extinction.

The contemporary mammalian life, although meager and diminutive,
possesses high scientific value from the fact that it immediately preceded
the great mammalian age of Tertiary time. A special effort has been
made, therefore, during the last year to obtain all the material possible,
and more than a thousand specimens of Cretaceous mammals have now
been obtained from the Laramie beds.

The strata next above the Laramie in southern Dakota and Wyoming
are the Brontotherium beds of the Lower Miocene, and here explorations
were continued with good success during part of the past season. All
the field work in this region lias been under the immediate charge of my
able assistant, Mr. J. B. Hatcher, but I visited the more important locali¬
ties during the autumn and endeavored to collate the facts previously
ascertained.

While the evidence now seems conclusive that vertebrate life affords
by far the most accurate record of the past, especially during later geo¬
logic time, the importance of bringing together all other information
bearing on the subject is equally evident. This point has been kept
constantly in mind during the last year, and a careful record has been
made, both geographic and stratigraphic, of the localities of all impor¬
tant specimens collected, and the most characteristic remains of inver¬
tebrates and plants found with them have been carefully preserved.
This will aid materially in the exact correlation of the work of this divi¬
sion with that of others of the Survey, and it is hoped will fix more
accurately several horizons hitherto in doubt.

The collections of vertebrate fossils obtained in the West during the
last few years, especially the more recent discoveries, are so important
that their prompt investigation seemed imperative, and this work has
taken a great deal of my own time during the last year. The prepara¬
tion of specimens for examination has mainly occupied the time of my
assistants in the laboratory, and in this necessary work good progress
has been made.

A large series of vertebrate fossils lias been selected for the National
Museum, and a part of them are already prepared and will soon be
placed on exhibition. This work will be continued until the space al¬
lotted to this branch of Paleontology is filled by characteristic specimens
from each formation.

Very respectfully,

O. C. Marsh,
Paleontologist in charge.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

120

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

REPORT OF MR. LESTER F. WARD.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Paleobotany,
Washington , D. (7., July 1 , 1891.

Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report of the opera¬
tions of the Division of Paleobotany during the fiscal year ended June
30, 1891 :

FIELD WORK.

Mr. David White was in the field on the 1st of July and did not return
to W ashington until September 22. He remained at Gay Head until
August 9, continuing his search for fossil plants in the Amboy clays
of that place, and making a thorough study of the geology of Martha’s
Vineyard. His labors were highly successful, and a large collection
was shipped to Washington.

From this time until his return he was engaged in attempting to con¬
nect these deposits with those of similar age on Long Island and in New
Jersey, also in seeking to trace the formation to the adjacent islands,
but the greater part of his time was spent on Long Island, where beds
similar to those of Gay Head occur. He succeeded in working out the
problem as fully as the limited time at his disposal would permit.

From April 23 to April 30 Mr. White accompanied the joint geological
expedition of the Johns Hopkins University, the U. S. Geological Sur¬
vey, and the Maryland State Agricultural College from Baltimore down
Chesapeake Bay and up the Potomac River to Washington. Collec¬
tions of diatomaceous earth and fucoids were made from the Neocene at
Herring Bay and Plum Point. At Drum Point a lignitic bed lying ap¬
parently in the Neocene was examined, and fragments of dicotyledonous
leaves, lignitized wood, insects, and fruits wrere gathered. Other lig¬
nitic material was collected from the Neocene near Burch’s, on the Pa¬
tuxent River, at several points near St. Mary’s, on St. Mary’s River,
from the Eocene along the Potomac River at Pope’s Creek and Gly-
mont, and from the Potomac formation at Cockpit Point. Specimens of
richly diatomaceous earth were also gathered from the Lower Neocene
at Nomini Clifts and Pope’s Creek.

Prof. F. H. Knowlton left Washington for Montana on the 14th of July
in company with Dr. Peale, with whom he remained as long as Dr. Peale’s
investigations continued, returning to Washington on October 3. His
object was to study the fossil plants of the Bozeman coal mines and ad¬
jacent strata in Dr. Peale’s department, these being about the only pale¬
ontological remains that occur in this region. They are very scarce,
and prolonged research was required to find any available data, but a
considerable collection was made, which is of great importance, espe¬
cially as showing the extension of the so-called Volcanic Tertiary of the

WARD. J

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

121

Yellowstone Park. Prof. Knowlton also availed himself of every oppor¬
tunity to collect siliciiied wood for microscopic study.

Mr. Prosser left Washington on July 14 for field work in the eastern
Catskills of New York, where fossil plants are of considerable impor¬
tance in determining stratigraphy. Two sections were made, each start¬
ing’ on the Upper Silurian and terminating in the Catskill stage. The
first section is from Kingston, along the line of the Ulster and Delaware
Railroad, in Ulster County, to the Grand Summit Station, and the sec¬
ond fifteen miles farther northeast, in Greene County, along the Kaaters-
kill Creek and up Round Top Mountain. He returned to Washington
on August 19.

On November 7 he was detailed by the chief geologist for field work
in Arkansas, under the directions of Prof. H. S. Williams and Dr. J. C.
Branner. The work consisted in an examination of a portion of the
area of the novaculite series of rocks in western central Arkansas. He
returned to Washington December 27, and his field notes have been
elaborated and submitted to Dr. Branner.

I left Washington on the first day of August and proceeded first to
Gay Head to superintend the work conducted there by Mr. White, and
in company with him went over the Gay Head section carefully, after
acquainting myself with the results arrived at by him. While there we
visited the island of No Man’s Land and most of the Elizabeth Islands
for the purpose of studying the deposits of these islands in connection
with those of Gay Head. Later on we also visited Nantucket and the
islands of Tuckernuck and Muskeget with the same object in view.

On the 8th of August I joined Prof. Wm. M. Fontaine at New Haven,
Connecticut, according to a previous arrangement, for the purpose of
continuing our studies of the Triassic formation. We spent several days
at the museum of Yale College examining the Triassic collections there
and taking important notes. We also made some local field excursions
from New Haven, in company with Prof. Dana. We then procured a
conveyance and proceeded across the Triassic belt to the Connecticut
River, and up that river to the most northern limits of the Trias, viz,
at Gill, Massachusetts. In making this journey we zigzagged several
times across the belt to visit the principal localities. We found Mr. S.
W. Loper actively engaged in studying the Triassic geology of the Con¬
necticut Valley under Prof. William M. Davis, and he had already found
a number of deposits yielding fossil plants. At Middletown we visited
the Wesleyan University museum and examined the collection there
from that formation. We also made a careful inspection of the impor¬
tant collection at Amherst, where most of the older types, that have been
figured, are on exhibition. We returned to New Haven on the 20th,
Prof. Fontaine proceeding to Virginia. After rejoining Mr. White and
continuing our investigations for a few days, I returned to Washington
on the 30tli of August.

Since the latter part of March I have been engaged, as opportunity

122

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

would permit, in the field study of the Potomac formation in the vicinity
of Washington and in the States of Maryland and Virginia. This work
was found essential to the continuance of my essay on the correlation of
the Lower Cretaceous plant-bearing deposits. My former studies in the
Potomac formation have been chiefly confined to the State of Virginia,
where, in company with Messrs. McGee and Fontaine, I have made
several excursions. But there are many points in dispute in regard to
the geologic position of the several members of the Potomac formation,
especially those about Baltimore and in the State of Maryland in general.
I therefore set myself the task of investigating these disputed points
and am still engaged in this research. My operations in this field con¬
sist of isolated excursions from Washington. My work is chiefly strati -
grapliical, although careful search is made for new localities at which
vegetable remains occur, these constituting about the only paleontolog¬
ical evidence that has thus far been discovered.

OFFICE WORK.

The force of the division during the year has included Mr. David
White, Mr. Charles S. Prosser, Prof. Knowlton, Assistant Paleontol¬
ogists, and Mr. F. von Daclienhausen, draftsman, the last detailed from
the Division of Illustrations. In addition to these Mr. A. C. Gisiger
remained in the division till October 31.

The classification of the office work for the year will be the same as
for previous years.

( 1 ) Preparation of illustrations. — Mr. von Dachenhausen has continued
during the year to assist in the preparation of illustrations. His work
has consisted in the main in inking in drawings made by Messrs. White
and Knowlton, who block out their illustrations in pencil. He has also
assisted me in perfecting the former original drawings of the Laramie
types where on careful investigation I have found them defective. In
this way he has been constantly supplied with an abundance of work.

(2) Identification of fossil plants. — Since returning from the field the
entire force has been engaged a large part of the time in the study and
identification of the collections made and of other collections previously
made or sent to the division for determination. Mr. White finished his
Gay Head forms early in the winter as far as could be done without
access to Dr. Newberry’s forthcoming work on the flora of the Amboy
clays. It was therefore deemed inadvisable to proceed further until
this work should be accessible. Mr. White has done, in addition to this,
a large amount of work of this class upon the Carboniferous flora of
Missouri, as represented in collections which Prof. Jenney and others
have sent from that State.

Mr. Prosser has also studied, as far as time would permit, the collec¬
tions made by him in New York State, mine of his time has been nec¬
essarily devoted to determining the collections and working up his

WARD.] the heads of divisions. 123

notes made in Arkansas, which do not. relate to fossil plants, except in a
minor degree.

The large collection made at Golden, Colorado, by the Eev. Arthur
Lakes and obtained by Prof. Emmons, was sent to the Division of
Paleobotany and Prof. Knowlton commenced work upon it in October.
He has determined most of the cryptogamic, coniferous, and monocot-
yledouous plants iu the collection, leaving the new dicotyledonous
species for further study.

Prof. Knowlton has done the same for the combined collections which
had been previously made from the Bozeman coal mines, viz, those fur¬
nished by Dr. Peale and Mr. Weed and also by himself. These col¬
lections will be treated by me as belonging to the Laramie group, and
the results will be embodied in my monograph of the flora of that
group.

Observing the especial aptitude for this class of work which Prof.
Knowlton evinces, it occurred to me to ask him to assist me iu the study
of my Laramie types. My work has been heretofore almost exclusively
confined to the difficult study of the dicotyledonous leaves, while Prof.
Knowlton’s special knowledge and preparation enabled him better to
study the lower forms. I have, therefore, assigned to him, as part of
his work, the determination of the cryptogams, conifers, and monocot¬
yledons of the Laramie group, and he commenced upon this work in
January last. He is making a very thorough revision of the work pre¬
viously done on these forms in this country, which he finds greatly to
need such revision.

The exceedingly great difficulty iu identifying fossil plants from leaves
by nervation and form aloue and the predominance in all collections of
later formations of this kind of specimens have induced me to undertake
a very extended research and as complete a comparison as possible of the
Laramie types of this class with figures made by other authors. For
nearly two years I have been engaged in this preliminary but very nec¬
essary examination and I have gone over the entire literature of paleo¬
botany, comparing all the types in my possession with the figures that
have been previously published. I did not complete this general study
until late in April, and siuce that time I have been engaged in the
classification by genera of the dicotyledonous forms. This classifica tion,
although still imperfect, is much more reliable than it could otherwise
have been.

(3) Preparation of manuscript. — Mr. White has made a good begin¬
ning upon his report on the plants collected by Prof. Jenney in Mis¬
souri. I have examined the manuscript as far as it has been written,
and consider his work very thorough and important. He will probably
offer it, when finished, as a bulletin of the Survey.

The only other manuscript work done iu the division during the year
has been that of the correlation essay. I completed the chapter relat¬
ing to the American Trias on the 23d of December. In April I prepared

124

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

a summary of the results arrived at in that chapter which is now ready
for publication. Since that time I have also prepared a paper on the
value of fossil plants as aids to geologic correlation and the methods to
be employed in the study of correlation by means of fossil plants.

The work reported last year of editing and completing the manuscript
of Prof. Lesquereux’s monograph of the Flora of the Dakota Group was
continued during the summer and finished in December, during which
month it was sent to press.

(4) Correction of proofs. — The proof of the volume just mentioned
began to arrive early in April and engrossed the greater part of the
time of Prof. Knowlton and myself during that month and the month
of May, two proofs of the entire work being carefully revised and cor¬
rected.

(5) Bibliographic worlc. — Mr. White has so far advanced with the
preparation of the bibliography of fossil plants as to consider it desir¬
able to have it announced in the publications of the Geological Survey
as in preparation, and this has now been done. If work upon this im¬
portant subject proceeds slowly it is in consequence of the great number
of other duties which devolve upon Mr. White.

(6) Catalogue work. — In my last administrative report I set forth at
some length the nature of this work. Although it was necessary to
withdraw Mr. Gisiger from this duty for a considerable portion of his
time, in order to have him engross upon the typewriter the monograph
of the flora of the Dakota group by Prof. Lesquereux, nevertheless,
such was his ability and industry that before leaving the division a large
number of the works to be catalogued were completed. The necessity,
from lack of funds, of dispensing with his services at the end of October,
was a severe blow to this part of my plan, but it has been continued by
Miss Schmidt with eminent success, and great progress has been made
since that time. In fact, with the exception of a body of the older and
more difficult literature, the work of cataloguing the books has now been
brought nearly to completion.

Of course a very large number of slips have been added to the index since
last year, when they were estimated at one hundred and sixty thousand.
It is probable that before their completion they will number nearly two
hundred thousand slips, each slip representing a distinct entry in some
work on paleobotany. Mr. Prosser has devoted more than three hours
per day, when not in the field, to the revision of this great slip index
and the selection of “type slips,” as explained in my last report. With
this work he has now proceeded to the letter M, and it is probable that
at the present rate of progress a year will be required to complete this
part of the work, which is necessary asjpreparatory to the working out
of the synonymy of the literature of the fossil plants.

(7) Care of the collections. — This part of the work of the division has
been under the immediate supervision of Prof. Knowlton, and the routine
work has been performed chiefly by Mr. T. E. Williard. Large collections

SCUDDER.

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

125

have been received during the year and great care has been taken that
a record of them should be carefully kept, that the Survey should be
"credited with all the specimens collected by its members, and that as
rapidly as possible the determined species should be placed either upon
exhibition or in a study series for the use of the scientific public. The
new system of registering adopted last year by Prof. Knowlton has been
rigidly enforced, and proves of great value to this work, both in the
matter of economy of time and of facility of reference.

Prof. W. M. Fontaine submits the following report of the work done
by him during the year:

In the summer of 1890 I made, in company with Prof. Ward, a reconnaissance of
the Connecticut oldor Mesozoic. The object was to compare these strata with those
farther south, to examine, if possible, fossil plants collected from the formation,
some of which had been incidentally reported in various scattered papers and some
being now in the hands of differeut parties and not reported. It was especially de¬
sired to determine whether or not there is a probability of finding new plant locali¬
ties in these beds.

Later in the summer I made collections of fossil plants from the older Mesozoic of
the Richmond coal fields. This work was not completed.

In office work I was engaged in studying, describing, and drawing fossil plants
collected by me from the basal beds of the Carboniferous of Virginia.

I also determined and described small collections of fossil plants made by the
Director of the Survey, and by Mr. Knowlton, from the (Trias) older Mesozoic of the
copper mines of New Mexico. Several minor points connected with Mesozoic fossil
plants have been referred to me by Prof. Ward.

Of late I have been occupied with selecting, labeling, and packing for shipment
the collections of fossil plants from the older Mesozoic and the Potomac formations
now in my hands.

Respectfully submitted.

Lester F. Ward,

Geologist in charge.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

REPORT OF PROF. SAMUEL H. SCUDDER.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Fossil Insects,

Cambridge , Massachusetts , June 30 , 1891.

Sir : The preparation of a monograph of the Tertiary rhynchophorous
Coleoptera, or snout beetles, of the United States has occupied the prin¬
cipal attention of my division during the last year, and is so far advanced
as to show that our Tertiary fauna is extremely rich and varied, about
one hundred species having already been described in full, and at least
one of the families proving already to be almost or quite as rich in forms
as is the existing fauna. This work will be completed during the com¬
ing year. The only other descriptive work has been (1) upon a small
collection of Pleistocene beetles found by Prof. B. K. Emerson in the

126

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

old bed of the Connecticut River, in Massachusetts, an account of which
was furnished him for a report he lias in preparation for the Survey,
and (2) the description of a new genus and species of dragon fly found
in the explorations of my party summer before last in the Roan Moun¬
tain shales in Colorado, and interesting as the first discovery of fossil
Gomphinse in this country.

The material brought home from the western explorations of my divi¬
sion mentioned in my last report has been carefully overhauled, and the
refuse material has been further split and examined with the result of
adding two or three hundred more specimens to the collection. Each
specimen in the collection has been carefully marked with a distinctive
white number, catalogued, where necessary specially mounted, and all
roughly classed. They have still to receive the distinctive labels of the
Survey, a work which will next receive attention, and a copy of the cat¬
alogue will then be made and transmitted to Washington.

The manuscript of an index to the described fossil insects of the world
has been finished; it was forwarded to Washington last August, and
the last proof read in May, forming Bulletin 71 of the Survey, a volume
of nearly 750 pages. The proof of a bibliography of fossil insects, a
complement to the preceding, was also completed in September, form¬
ing Bulletin 69, a pamphlet of about 100 pages. The reading of the
proof of my Tertiary Insects of North America, forming Yol. xm of the
Hayden series of reports, issued under your auspices, was also completed
in September, forming a quarto volume of over 700 pages and 28 litho¬
graphic plates. Besides these publications, four papers on the older
(mostly Carboniferous and Triassic) insects of North America have been
published in the Memoirs of the Boston Society of Natural History, and
have also been embodied in the first of two volumes on the fossil insects
of North America independently published by the writer, the first vol¬
ume comprising a collection of papers on pre-Tertiary insects previously
published, making a quarto volume of about 450 pages and 35 litho¬
graphic plates, the second, the volume on Tertiary insects above referred
to. Finally a short paper on the Fossil Hemiptera of British Columbia
has been published in the Contributions to Canadian paleontology of
the Geological Survey of Canada.

A card catalogue of the described fossil insects of each distinct local¬
ity in North America has been prepared for office use.

The only field work undertaken during the year was a brief visit to
the lignite beds of Gay Head, Massachusetts, to see whether they could
be profitably worked for remains of insects. While some fragments of
the chitinous covering of beetles were found, these were so extremely
few and of such a fragmentary nature as to render further work in this
direction undesirable.

A great deal of time has been given to the selection of material for the
draughtsman and the examination and correction of his drawings at
every stage of their progress. These have been confined mostly to

CLARKE.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

127

Hemiptera, aculeate Hymenoptera, and rkyncliopliorous Coleoptera.
In all, eiglity-one enlarged drawings in ink have been completed, ready
for photographic reproduction when needed.

Respectfully submitted.

Sam. H. Scudder,

Paleon to l og ist.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

REPORT OF MR. F. W. CLARKE.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Chemistry and Physics,

Washington, D. C., June 30, 1891.

Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report of work done in
the Division of Chemistry and Physics during the fiscal year ending
June 30, 1891.

In the scientific force of the division, numbering seven chemists and
two physicists, no changes have been made; and in its essential features
the work has followed the lines established during previous years. In
the ordinary routine work of the chemical laboratory 262 finished analy¬
ses have been reported, mostly of rocks and minerals collected by field
geologists of the Survey, and a much larger number of specimens
received from various sources liave been reported upon qualitatively.
In field work, on the other hand, little has been done; one week spent
by myself in a study of certain vein granites in Hew Hampshire,
and about ten days devoted by Dr. E. A. Schneider to the vermiculite
localities of southeastern Pennsylvania, covering, apart from the inves¬
tigations of Dr. T. M. Cliatard, to be mentioned later, all that was accom¬
plished outside of the laboratory.

Personally, aside from the usual administrative duties, my own work
is mainly represented by a joint research with Dr. Schneider into the
chemical constitution of the micas, chlorites, and vermiculites. This
research is a continuation of one completed during the previous year,
and has led to a general solution of the problem under consideration.
The results are already written up, and will appear in a forthcoming
bulletin. Since May 1 much of my time has been occupied with prepar¬
ations for the exhibit of the Survey to be made at the World’s Fair in
Chicago, and the collections to be displayed are already well started.

During the year 1889-’90, Dr. W. F. Hillebrand published a remark¬
able paper upon uraninite. In that mineral, which occurs chiefly in
Archean granites, he discovered nitrogen, a discovery of great impor¬
tance in its geological bearings. During the year just closed he has
extended that investigation, examining several new occurrences of the
mineral, and confirming his earlier results. He has also begun synthetic

128

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

experiments, with a view to ascertaining in what manner the nitrogen
of uraninite is combined; but no final conclusions have as yet been
reached.

To Dr. Chatard a special study of our national resources in mineral
phosphates lias been assigned. This task is chiefly important on the
economic side; and so far the work has touched only the recently dis¬
covered deposits of Florida. In February and March Dr. Chatard spent
over a month in making field collections, and since his return he has
analyzed many samples, and has made exhaustive experiments upon
the analytical methods to be used in the investigation. Earlier in the
year he examined a series of zinciferous clays collected by Mr. W. P.
Jenney in Missouri, in which work a careful study of analytical processes
also became necessary.

In mineralogy, several interesting researches have been completed.
One mineral, collected by Mr. E. L. Packard in the Seven Devils Min¬
ing District of Idaho, was examined by Dr. W. H. Melville, and proved
to be a new species, to which the name powellite has been given. The
mineral is a calcium molybdate, isomorplious with the corresponding
tungstate, scheelite, and is interesting as the completion of a mineralogic
series. Dr. Melville has also examined a natrolite from the eheolite-
syenite of Magnet Cove, Arkansas, a remarkable bismuthinite from
Mexico, and a radiated brown tourmaline from California. Mr. Eakius
has analyzed and described the very rare mineral tschefikiiiite from a
new locality in Bedford County, Virginia; and, in connection with Mr.
Whitman Cross, new occurrences of ptilolite, diaspore, and alunite from
Colorado. He has also analyzed two new meteorites; one a stone from
Washington County, Kansas, the other an iron from Pulaski County,
Virginia.

In purely chemical investigations I can only report a continuation by
Dr. H. K. Stokes of his work upon the silicic ethers and some experi¬
ments by Dr. Schneider upon inorganic colloids. Both researches are
still in progress ; but Dr. Stokes has already published an account of a
new silicopliosphoric chloride, a compound of quite novel character,
obtained incidentally to the regular study of the main problem. The
problem itself is to ascertain the chemical nature of the silicic acids,
which play so fundamental a part in most of our rock-forming minerals.

In the physical laboratory Dr. Carl Barns has continued his studies
upon the thermodynamics of solids and liquids, and has especially con¬
sidered the chemical behavior of solids under pressure, a subject which
bears directly upon elasticity and viscosity. Incidentally to this work,
various subsidiary researches were necessary relating to improvements
in the screw compresser used in the experiments, and to the comparison
of the pressure gauges employed. The Amagat, Bourdon, and Tait
gauges were all investigated, and the last-named gauge was found
available up to 2,000 atmospheres of pressure. It is also the most con¬
venient of application.

DAY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

129

Dr. Barus, with the help of the experience gained in the foregoing
researches, has been able, furthermore, to explore the isotliermals of
liquid matter far enough to show the nature of the continuity of the
solid and liquid states. He is now studying the changes of specific heat,
and of thermal conductivity encountered in passing along a given
isothermal from liquid to solid, and intends to coordinate these measure¬
ments with the corresponding volume changes.

In the earlier part of the fiscal year Dr. William Hallock measured
the thermal expansion of several samples of marble and one of
slate. Early in 1891 this work was temporarily laid aside, in order to
take up the measurement of the effect of pressure upon the melting point
of ice. In the middle of April this study was in turn interrupted in
order that Dr. Hallock might visit Wheeling, and there carry out a
series of observations upon the deep artesian well now being driven in
that city. Upon that investigation he is still engaged.

Very respectfully,

F. W. Clarke,

Chief Chemist.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

REPORT OF MR. DAVID T. DAY.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Mining Statistics and Technology,

Washington , I). C., July 1 , 1891.

Sir : In submitting the administrative report for the fiscal year ended
June 30, 1891, of the Division of Mining Statistics and Technology which
you have given to my charge, I have the honor to state that in accord¬
ance with instructions of the Honorable the Secretary of the Interior,
based on the request of the Superintendent of the Census referred to in
my last administrative report, I have conducted the investigation into
the mineral industries of the United States for the Eleventh Census in
addition to the duties in this office, which have consisted of general
correspondence with producers of minerals and others seeking informa¬
tion in regard to the amount of minerals produced and other statistical
questions, the examination of specimens forwarded to me for determina¬
tion of their economic importance, and information concerning the sta¬
tistical and technical matters related to mineral matters furnished to
foreign legations. During this time active preparation also has been
made for a statistical canvass of the United States to follow that of the
Eleventh Census. This canvass was begun shortly after the commence¬
ment of the present calendar year. It has already shown that the
mineral industries during the calendar year 1890 were in a condition of
12 geol - 9

130

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

increased activity as compared with the preceding year. The total pro¬
duction of coal will prove especially great. At the close of the year the
production of metallic tin was begun as a new industry in this country
in California, and the manufacture of this metal into tin plates was also
inaugurated the same year at St. Louis.

The following statement gives a summary of the condition of the
mineral industries of the United States in 1890.

METALS.

Iron and steel. — The production of pig iron in the United States in the
year 1889 was 7,603,642 long tons, or 8,516,079 short tons, valued at
$120,000,000, taking as the standard of valuation the price of J7o. 1 an¬
thracite pig iron in Philadelphia. This was greater than the product of
any previous year; but in 1890 the product increased greatly, reaching
9,202,703 long tons, or 10,307,028 short tons, valued at $151,200,410.
The production of Bessemer steel in the United States in 1890 was
4,131,535 short tons, against 3,281,829 short tons in 1889, a gain of nearly
26 per cent. The consumption of limestone for flux in iron-ore smelting
was 6,318,000 long tons in 1889 and 7,000,000 long tons in 1890.

Gold and silver. — In 1889 the mines of the United States produced,
according to the census returns, 1,590,869 fine ounces of gold, with a
coining value of $32,886,744, and 51,354,851 ounces of silver, with a coin¬
ing value of $66,396,988. In 1890 the product, according to the Director
of the Mint, was: Gold 1,588,880 ounces, valued at $32,845,000, and
silver, 54,500,000 ounces, with a coining value of $70,464,645.

Copper. — The copper product remained nearly stationary in 1889 and
1890, being 231,246,214 pounds in 1889 and 265,115,133 pounds in 1890,
worth respectively $26,907,809 and $30,848,797.

Lead. — The total product increased in 1889 to 182,967 short tons,
worth $16,137,689, compared with 180,555 short tons in 1888, worth
$15,924,951. In 1890 the product decreased to 161,754 short tons, worth
$14,266,703. The producers carried a stock of 10,389 short tons on Jan¬
uary 1, 1891, as compared with 7,715 short tons on January 1, 1890.
The lead content of the ores imported from Mexico was 26,570 tons in
1889 and 18,124 tons in 1890. The production of lead in the first half of
1891 increased to 95,121 short tons.

Zinc. — In 1888 the total product of spelter was 55,903 short tons,
worth $5,500,855. In 1889 it increased to 59,188 short tons, worth
$5,824,099 and in 1890 to 63,683 short tons, worth $6,266,407. The stocks
in the hands of producers are small, considering the magnitude of the
industry. On January 1, 1890, these stocks were 1,268 short tons, and
on January 1, 1891, had decreased to 1,134 tons.

Quicksilver. — The industry continues to decline in spite of active pros¬
pecting for new supplies. In 1888 the product was 33,250 flasks of 76£
pounds net, valued in San Francisco at $1,413,125. In 1889 this declined
to 26,484 flasks, although the price was $45 per flask, which was suffi-

DAT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

131

cient to cause strong inquiry for new supplies. In 1890 the product de¬
creased to 22,920 flasks, the average price increasing to $48.33 per flask.
The product all came from California.

Nickel. — During the years 1889 and 1890 the condition of the industry
changed completely, due to the development of extensive supplies in
Canada. The inquiry for still other new deposits was nevertheless
stimulated by the successful tests of steel containing a small percentage
of nickel for armor plates. Previously the markets were regulated prin¬
cipally by the output of the Hew Caledonia mines. In 1888 the total
product in the United States was 203,328 pounds. In 1889 this increased
to 217,663 pounds and in 1890 to 223,488 pounds, worth $134,093. The
product from Canadian matte was 35,000 pounds in 1889 and 100,000
pounds m 1890.

Cobalt oxide. — The product has followed the nickel industry except
that proportionately more nickel has been produced than cobalt oxide,
because the Canadian matte contains scarcely any cobalt. The Hew
Caledonian producers have produced a greater proportion of cobalt by
the aid of a manganiferous iron ore containing nickel and cobalt. The
product in 1889 was 12,955 pounds and in 1890 10,000 pounds. The
price remained at about $2.50 per pound.

Chromic iron ore. — The industry remains unchanged. The supplies
come from California, together with increasing importations from Tur¬
key and Asia Minor. The output in California in 1889 was 2,000 long
tons and in 1890 11,000 long tons.

Manganese. — Product in 1889, 24,197 long tons, which include a small
shipment from Colorado. In 1890 the product was 25,000 long tons,
worth $250,000. The importations are increasing. In addition, man¬
ganiferous iron ores were produced to the amount of 83,434 tons in 1889
and 75,000 tons in 1890.

Aluminum. — The production of aluminum continued and increased
from about 500 pounds in 1888 to 19,200 pounds in 1889, and 60,000
pounds in 1890. The price per pound during this period decreased
from $4.50 per pound in 1888 to $1 per pound in 1890 for ingots. The
manufacture of aluminum into musical instruments, thin sheets for
ornamental purposes, and into various utensils is increasing.

FUELS.

Coal. — In 1889 the total product of coal of all kinds was 141,229,513
short tons, valued at the mines before any expenses for shipment, at
$160,226,323. The product included 45,600,487 short tons of Pennsyl¬
vania and other anthracite, worth $65,879,514, and 95,629,026 short
tons of bituminous coal and lignite, valued at $94,346,809.

In 1890 the total product increased to 153,389,724 short tons, a gain
of 8-61 per cent over 1889. The total value at the mines was $170,-
876,904. Of the above, 46,468,641 short tons were anthracite, worth

132

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

$01,445,683, and 106,921,083 short tons were bituminous coal and lignite,
worth $109,431,221.

Petroleum. — The product in 1889 was 35,163,513 barrels, valued at
$26,963,340. In 1S90 the product was 47,000,000 barrels, worth $30,-
000,000.

The features of the two years have been the successful refining of
Lima, Ohio, oil, which now supplies a large share of the domestic trade,
and the great increase in production in 1890 in Pennsylvania.

Natural gas. — The product measured in terms of the coal displaced
shows a decline from $22,629,875 in 1888, to $19,897,099 in 1889. The
product declined again in 1890.

STRUCTURAL MATERIALS.

Building stone. — The product in 1889 includes granite to the value of
$14,464,095, at the place where produced and in the condition in which
it was first sold ; marble, $3,488,170; sandstone, $10,816,057 ; bluestone,
$1,689,606; limestone, $19,095,179; and slate, $3,482,513. In 1890 the
total value of these products aggregates $54,000,000. Even allowing
for a considerable growth in the industry since 1888, these figures show
that the statement then made was too small.

ABRASIVE MATERIALS.

Buhrstones. — The product continued to decrease. In 1889 the product
was valued at $35,155, and in 1890 at about $30,000.

Grindstones. — The supply still comes from Ohio and Michigan. The
consumption has increased in grinding wood pulp. The product In 1889
was valued at $439,587, and in 1890 at $450,000.

Oilstones and whetstones. — This industry derives its supplies from
well established quarries in Arkansas and New Hampshire. In 1889
the product amounted to 2,354,000 pounds, chiefly novaculite, and
valued at $32,980. In 1890, 2,500,000 pounds were produced, worth
$35,000 in the rough state.

MISCELLANEOUS.

Precious stones. — The product is small and, with the exception of
agatized wood, the tourmalines regularly produced in Maine and a few
gems from North Carolina, consists principally of tourists’ jewelry.
It was valued at $188,807 in 1889, and $200,000 in 1890.

Phosphate rock. — In 1889 the production of phosphate rock was estab¬
lished as a new industry in Florida and its importance is increasing.
The total product from all sources amounted to 550,245 long tons in
1889, which was the greatest amount ever reported. In 1890 the product
was 575,000 long tons, worth $2,800,000.

Marls. — The product in 1889 was about 139,522 short tons, worth
$63,956, and in 1890, 125,000 short tons, worth $50,000. There is little
change in the industry.

DAY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

133

Salt. — Product in 1889, 10,000,000 barrels, worth $5,000,000, and in
1890, 8,683,943 barrels, worth $4,707,869.

Bromine. — The product in 1889 was 300,000 pounds, valued at $90,000.
In 1890 this decreased to 100,000 pounds on account of the accumula¬
tion of stock.

Borax. — In 1889 the product was 8,000,000 pounds, worth $500,000,
and in 1890 the product remained about stationary.

Sulphur. — In 1889 and 1890 the Utah works were closed by litigation.
There was a small product from the Nevada mines amounting to 1,150
short tons. Efforts are being made to open the Louisiana mines.

Pyrites. — The product from Virginia, Massachusetts, and Vermont
amounted to 93,705 long tons, worth $202,119 in 1889, and in 1890 to
87,856 long tons, worth $235,611.

Barytes. — The use of this material is increasing. The main sources of
supply are mines in Missouri, Virginia, and New York. The total
product in 1889 was 19,161 long tons and in 1890, 20,000 long tons.

Gypsum. — In 1889 the product was 267,769 short tons of crude gypsum,
worth $764,118 and in 1890, 275,000 short tons, worth $800,000.

Ozokerite. — Development work was continued in the region near
Soldiers’ Summit, Utah, and 50,000 pounds were produced in 1889 and
100,000 pounds in 1890.

Asphaltum. — During the last two years the product on the Pacific
coast has increased markedly and the price has declined. Product in
1889, 51,735 short tons, worth $171,537, and in 1890, 60,000 short tons,
worth $200,000. The production of gilsonite in Utah continues and
amounted to 492 short tons in 1889 and 1,105 tons in 1890.

Soapstone. — The use of this material in the form of slabs for various
purposes increases. The total product of all kinds was 36,461 short tons
in 1889 and 49,809 short tons in 1890. Of this, 23,746 short tons and
34,809 short tons respectively consisted of fibrous talc from New York.

Mica. — The production decreased in 1889, but is now increasing again ;
product in 1889, 49,500 pounds, worth $50,000, and in 1890, 60,000
pounds, worth $75,000.

Mineral paints. — The product includes ocher, metallic paints, and
some umber and sienna ; it amounted to 32,307 long tons in 1889 and
35,000 long tons in 1890.

Graphite. — The principal product in 1889 was 400,000 pounds of re¬
fined graphite from Ticonderoga, New York, worth $33,000. In 1890
this product was about stationary. Besides this, cheaper grades were
obtained from several localities for use in making foundry facings, etc.

Fluorspar. — The supply from Rosiclare, Illinois, and Evansville, In¬
diana, is sufficient for the gradually increasing use as a flux in cupola
furnaces and for chemical purposes. The product was 9,500 short tons
in 1889, and 8,250 short tons in 1890. Some artificial fluorspar is made
as a by-product in the decomposition of Greenland cryolite.

Infusorial earth. — From the usual sources, the product was 3,466 short
tons in 1889 and 5,000 short tons in 1890.

134

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Mineral waters. — Total product in 1889, 12,780,471 gallons, worth
81,748,458, and 14,000,000 gallons in 1890, worth $2,000,000.

In addition to myself, the office force consisted of Mr. W. A. Raborg
and Mr. E. W. Parker, who entered on duty as statistician in this divi¬
sion on May 16, 1891.

I have the honor to be, sir, your obedient servant,

David T. Day,
Geologist in Charge.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

REPORT OF MR. F. H. NEWELL.

U S. Geological Survey,

Division of Hydrography,
Washington , D. C., July 1, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit the following statement of work done
in the Division of Hydrography for the year ended yesterday.

On the 1st of last July there were in the field nine hydrographers and
assistants carrying on operations in as many basins of the arid regions.
Their work consisted in measuring the discharge of various rivers at
stations previously established and computing the daily discharge of
these streams. The liydrographer and his assistants moved from place
to place in the region assigned, measured streams at different stages,
and endeavored to obtain the discharge for various heights of water from
lowest stage to highest Hood. From these measurements and a study
of the habits of each river tables were constructed, by which, the height
on any day being known, the corresponding discharge could be read off.

While field work was in progress, the liydrographer studied the topo¬
graphic and climatic peculiarities of each sub-basin in the region under
examination, the causes of anomalies in the behavior of the streams
being especially an object of research, and by this means a considerable
body of facts, believed to be valuable for the purpose, has been put on
record. Each liydrographer obtained information concerning the devel¬
opment of irrigation in his division, both as to its present condition and
future probabilities. These statements were transmitted monthly,
together with all hydrographic data, to the office at Washington, where
the material was critically reviewed, computations completed and veri¬
fied, and the matter prepared for publication.

In the Upper Missouri and Yellowstone basins Mr. J. B. Williams had
charge of six gauging stations, situated respectively on the West Gal¬
latin about 20 miles from Bozeman, on the Madison near Red Bluff, on
Red Rock Creek, a tributary of the Jefferson, on the Sun River eighteen
miles above Augusta, and on the Yellowstone, at the town of Horr, six
miles below Cinnabar.

NEWELL.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

135

In the Arkansas basin in Colorado were nine stations under the charge
of Mr. Robert Robertson, assisted by Mr. R. P. Irving. These stations
were located mainly on the upper tributaries of the Arkansas, the sta¬
tions being selected largely with reference to facilities for storage of water.
These were situated on the East Fork of the Arkansas, on Tennessee
Fork, on Lake Fork, on Twin Lake Creek, below the outlet of the lakes, at
Hayden on the Arkansas, on Clear Creek, on the Middle and South
Forks of Cottonwood Creek, and at Canyon City.

In the Rio Grande basin two permanent gauging stations, that at Del
Norte, Colorado, and one at Embudo, New Mexico, were under the charge
of Assistant Hydrographer W. B. Lane, while the station at El Paso,
Texas, was in charge of Assistant Hydrographer H. P. Croft, who also
carried on sediment observations and measurements of evaporation.

In the Gila basin in Arizona, Mr. W. A. Farish made gaugings at the
station on the Gila at the Buttes, fifteen miles above Florence, and also
established a station on the Salt River in the canyons nearly fifty miles
above Phoenix. The work in this basin was exceedingly arduous on
account of the lack of transportation facilities, the almost tropical heat
of summer, and the violence of the floods.

In the Carson and Truckee basins in Nevada and California Mr. Win.
P. Trowbridge had charge of stations on Prosser Creek, the little Truckee
and Truckee River near Boca, California, on the Truckee at Laughtons,
above Reno, and at Vista, below Reno, also on the East Fork of the
Carson at Rodenbah, Nevada, on the West Fork of the Carson near
Woodford, California, and on the main Carson at Empire, Nevada, about
five miles east of Carson City.

In the Salt Lake and Sevier basins Mr. T. M. Bannon had gauging
stations on the Bear River at Battle Creek, Idaho, and at Collinston,
Utah, on the Ogden and Weber Rivers in the canyons near the city of
Ogden, on the American Fork, Provo and Spanish Fork Rivers, in the
canyons entering Utah Lake Valley, and on the Sevier at Joseph and
Leamington.

In the Snake River basin Mr. F. M. Smith made measurements at the
permanent stations on the North Fork of the Snake, on Fall River, Teton
River, and the South Fork of the Snake, and on the Snake at Eagle Rock,
Idaho. He also had charge of a second party, making measurements on
the Owyhee and Malheur Rivers in Oregon and the Weiser River in
western Idaho.

Reports from the liydrographers in the field, including the original
notes and observations, when received at this office were examined, ab¬
stracted, and filed, and materials for an annual report of progress were
prepared during July and August. At the end of August, there being
no further allotment for continuing hydrographic field work, the parties
were disbanded and property turned over to the Topographic Branch of
the Survey. At that time there still remained a large accumulation of
undigested hydrographic information awaiting preparation for publica-

136

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

tion. Reports of tlie height of rivers at the stations occupied by the
hydrographers continued to come in throughout the year, affording the
data for computing the daily mean discharge of some of the more im¬
portant streams.

This matter was placed in charge of Mr. Cyrus C. Babb for examina¬
tion and reduction to concise form, results being shown both by tables
and diagrams. The work has progressed rapidly, permitting the prep¬
aration of a paper, herewith submitted, on the hydrography of the arid
lands. This paper summarizes the present condition of our knowledge
regarding many of the rivers of that portion of the country, and also
gives a somewhat detailed description, compiled largely from the obser¬
vations of hydrographers, of the Rio Grande basin, the Gila basin, and
the catchment area of Bear River.

The information concerning the development of irrigation has been
utilized in a different direction. During the past year I was detailed
for six months to the Census Office as special agent for the investiga¬
tion of irrigation, and by permission made use in the Census Bulletins
of the material collected by the Geological Survey, by this means
amplifying and completing data which otherwise was in parts too frag¬
mentary for publication.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

F. H. Newell,
Topographer in charge

Hon. J. W. Powell, Director.

REPORT OF MR. DE LANCEY W. GILL.

II. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Illustrations,
Washington , D. 0., June 30, 1891.

Sir: I have the honor to submit the following statement of work
done in the division under my charge during the fiscal year ending
June 30, 1891.

The personnel of the division is as follows: John L. Ridgway, Daniel
W. Cronin, H. Hobart Nichols, II. A. C. Hunter, F. W. von Daehen-
liausen, Chas. R. Keyes, Daniel P. O’Hare, Henry S. Selden, Malcolm
B. Cudlipp, and Wells M. Sawyer.

Mr. Ridgway has been engaged for the past year principally in the
preparation of paleontologic drawings. As my assistant he has ren¬
dered valuable service in the superintendence of general draughting
and the routine office work. Mr. Cronin’s work has been the prepara¬
tion of maps and geologic sections. Mr. Nichols has been employed
principally in the preparation of geologic landscapes and diagrams.
Early in December Mr. Hunter undertook the preparation of a large
number of drawings of Echinoderms for Prof. Win. B. Clark. These he

GILL.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

137

completed early in May and since that time has been steadily employed
on miscellaneous office work. Mr. von Dachenhausen has been engaged
exclusively in paleontologic drawings for Prof. Lester F. Ward and his
assistants. Mr. Keyes has been temporarily employed, from time to
time, in the preparation of paleontologic drawings for Professor Clark.
Messrs. O’Hare, Selden, and Cudlipp were detailed from the topographic
corps to assist me in February and since then have been employed on
general map, diagram, and section work. Mr. Sawyer, whose services
date from March 11, has been engaged in miscellaneous office work.

Drawings numbering 1,520 have been produced by the draftsmen of
this division within the fiscal year. This is nearly double the number
produced in any previous year, and the showing is most satisfactory.
The drawings are classified as follows :

Paleontologic . 601

Geologic sections and diagrams . 733

Geologic landscapes . 20

Maps . 55

Miscellaneous . Ill

The illustrations for two annual reports (2 vols. each), two mono¬
graphs, and seven bulletins were transmitted to the Public Printer
during the fiscal year. The illustrations for these publications were
classified for engraving as follows :

Chromolithography . 44

Lithography . 3

Wood engraving . 19

Half-tone engraving . 235

Photo-engraving . 681

That part of the routine office work which consists in the criticism
and revision of engravers’ proof has been very heavy this year. Com¬
plete record and specifications of all illustration material sent in for
publication has been kept by me, and through the hearty cooperation
of the Government Printing Office the transmittal of proof to and from
the contracting engravers has been greatly facilitated.

The work of classification and storage of engraved blocks and electro¬
types has been pushed as rapidly as such material has been received
from the Public Printer.

The printed editions of all chromolithographic and photo-gelatine
work used as illustrations in the reports of the Survey during the year
have been examined by me at the Government Printing Office.

No field work has been undertaken by me or my assistants during
the year.

The photographic laboratory has been conducted, as in previous years,
under the able management of Mr. J. K. Hillers, assisted by C. 0. Jones,
assistant photographer, and John Erbach, Chas. A. Ross, and Edward
Block, photographic printers. On account of the great press of office

138

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

work no field work was undertaken by him during the year. The fol¬
lowing is a statement of work done in the photographic laboratory
during the year.

Negatives.

Prints.

Size.

Number.

Size.

Number.

28 by 34

226

28 by 34

1,761

22 by 28

22 by 28 _

320

20 by 24

422

20 by 24

2, 481

14 by 17

339

11 by 14

163

11 by 14

1,462

8 by 10

231

8 by 10

2, 983

5 by 8

777

4 by 5

1,481

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

De Lancey W. Gill,

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

In charge.

REPORT OF MR. S. J. KUBEL.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Engraving and Printing,

Washington , D. G., June 30, 1891.

Sir : The following exhibit of the operations of the Division of En¬
graving and Printing for the year ending June 30, 1891, is respectfully
submitted.

This division was created in February, 1890. Before that date all the
Survey’s map-engraving and map-printing was done by contract. Since
that date a part has been done by contract and a part by the division.
Contract work has not diminished, but work done by the division has
steadily and rapidly increased. Begun on a limited scale last year,
expansion has steadily followed, organization been perfected, and an
increasing output of results made.

This division now employs 12 persons : 1 chief, 7 engravers, 2 printers,
and 2 assistants. At the beginning of the year it employed 1 chief, 4
engravers, and 1 printer. The machinery at the beginning of the year
consisted of 2 hand lithographic presses and a copper plate press. In
addition to those it now lias, installed and in use, a Hoe lithographic
power press No. 3, an Emmerich and Vanderlehr stone-grinding ma¬
chine, a Cottrell copper-routing machine, a C. & C. four-horse power elec¬
tric motor, and a Brown & Carver 44-inch paper-cutting machine. These
are all in use and wholly satisfactory. Besides these it has 1,557
engraved copper plates, a large supply of lithographic stones, paper,
printing material, and a lot of furniture and instruments used for en¬
graving and printing purposes.

KL'BEL.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

139

At tlie beginning' of the year the division occupied two small rooms,
one containing the chief and 4 engravers, the other the printer, the
presses, and their belongings. It now occupies four rooms, two contain¬
ing the engravers and one the chief, and the fourth being the press-room,
about three times as large as the former one. The division is well pre¬
pared to meet current demands upon it, but further expansion will be
necessary if the demands continue to grow as they are now doing and
promise to continue doing. Its most important need is additional room.

ENGRAVING.

Personnel. — Messrs. H. T. Knight, O. J. Stuart, W. D. Evans, and
E. H. Daniel have been employed throughout the year. Mr. A. Kress
joined the division in July, 1800, Mr. 0. J. Helm in February, 1801, and
Mr. L. E. Davis in March, 1801.

Work done. — The work of the engravers has consisted in :

(1) The production of a series of copper plates bearing patterns desig¬
nating geologic features. Of these plates 11 have been completed after
repeated studies and trials both as to acceptability of pattern and
method of execution. By a method of surface printing from engraved
copper plates one of the chief obstacles to the production of these plates
lias been overcome.

(2) The engraving of 24 topographic atlas sheets of the area known
as the Arkansas Coal Belt. These sheets on a scale of 1 : G2500 were,
as usual, engraved on 3 plates showing respectively public culture,
drainage, and topography. The work was done in conjunction and by
an arrangement with the Geological Survey of Arkansas. The manu¬
script maps from which these engravings were made did not conform to
the atlas sheets as engraved, and thus joining as well as engraving was
necessary, a matter of considerable labor and difficulty.

(3) The engraving of topographic atlas sheets produced by the Survey.
The Desplaines, Riverside, Larned, and Cheney atlas sheets were com¬
pletely engraved and work begun on the Carson, Golden, Baltimore, and
Relay sheets.

(4) The engraving of a base map of the United States, size 17 by 28
inches, scale 1 :.7,000,000, containing 1,000-foot contours, has been begun
recently j also, an index or progress map to show the location of the
various sheets and the progress of survey and publication.

(5) The engraving of other new work as follows : (a) Example of sur¬
veyed control of a reservoir, 3 plates; ( b ) map of Clear Lake, 3 plates;
(c) map of Snake River Canal Line, 3 plates; ( d ) map of drainage ba¬
sin of Bear River, 4 plates; ( e ) sketch map of Alaska, 1 plate; (/) dia¬
gram segregation of lands; ( g ) diagram used in noting discharge of
rivers; (h) the addition of Rhode Island and part of Connecticut to the
previously engraved wall map of Massachusetts.

(6) Revision of engraved plates. Much time, care, and labor is spent
in revising, correcting, and adding new data to the plates. This work
is essential in order to have the maps keep pace with the changes, par-

140

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

ticularly in regions of rapid development, and be kept up to tlie latest
information.

(7) Some engraving of an experimental character has been done, and
a few plates have been engraved bearing diagrams, scales, sketches, etc.

PRINTING.

Before the creation of the division, office editions of the various atlas
sheets were printed and obtained from the engravers under contract.
The establishment of a map-printing office in the Survey has done away
with this practice. All atlas sheets are now printed in the Survey and
much more cheaply than was done by contract. It is also found ad¬
vantageous to have presses at command, so that the delay due to con¬
tracts may be avoided. For some atlas sheets there is an active de¬
mand, for others a less demand. Thus all copies of certain sheets are
quickly used up, and much of the labor of the press room has consisted
in printing additional copies of these sheets, editions ranging from 50 to
500. They are usually printed in three colors, public culture in black,
drainage in blue, and hill forms in brown, but departures from this
usage for special needs are not infrequent. The atlas sheets are all
engraved on copper, on three plates, and then, for the most part, trans¬
ferred to and printed from stone. As each transfer involves a few dol¬
lars’ expense, a few transfers have been made to zinc for preservation
and resulting economy. It is proposed to make more extended use of
this zincograpliic process hereafter.

Work done. — The work of the printing section has consisted, in addi¬
tion to transferring, proving, printing, stone-grinding, printing of plate
proofs, and various bits of unclassified work, of: (1) The printing of
26,000 atlas sheets, each in three colors. (2) The printing of 3,000 copies
of a contour map of the United States. Tliis is a contour map, 49 by 81
inches, on a scale of 1 : 2,500,000, or about 40 miles to the inch, and is
printed in four colors. It is composed of nine sheets. (3) The printing
of an edition of 750 copies of a chart for the U. S. Hydrographic Office
entitled “Tracks Followed by Full-powered Steam Vessels.” This chart
is in two sheets and in three colors.

Personnel. — In December, 1890, Mr. Donald Barr, who had been em¬
ployed as printer since the organization of the division, left it and was
succeeded by Mr. K. H. Payne, of New Jersey, who has discharged his
difficult and delicate duties with fidelity, zeal, and ability. Since March,
1891, Mr. Hermann Krauss, of New York, lias been employed as press¬
man and has given satisfaction. Mr. J. B. Altmann has continued liis
position as printer and general assistant in the press room. Of late,
also, Mr. W. C. Souder has rendered useful service in the press room.

The total number of engraved copper plates on hand June 30, 1891, is
1,557, and the total number of atlas sheets engraved is 500.

Respectfully submitted.

S. J. Kubel,

Hon. J. W. Powell, Chief Engraver.

Director.

CBOFFUT.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

141

REPORT OF MR. W. A. CROFFUT.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Editorial Division,

Washington , J). (7., June 30, 1891.

Sir : This division was occupied during the fiscal year in examining
manuscripts and proofs of annual reports, papers, monographs, and
bulletins which the Director approved for publication. It is gratifying
to announce that the publication of the annual reports, monographs,
and bulletins of the Survey, with the earnest cooperation of authors
and of the Public Printer and his assistants, has at last been brought
up to date. The editorial work of the year which this progress involved
is outlined thus :

Manuscript and proof read.

Manuscript read.

Proof read.

Eleventh Annual, part u.

Bulletins 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77,
78, 79, 80, 81, 82, and 91.

Tenth Annual Report.

Eleventh Annual Report.

Monograph XVII.

Bulletins 58, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68,
69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79,
80 (in part), 81 (in part).

This aggregates as follows:

Galleys received from Public Printer . 2, 390

Galleys corrected and returned . 2, 250

Pages received from Public Printer . . . 10, 976

Pages corrected and returned . 10, 729

Bulletins 58, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, and 77, Monograph i,
Mineral Resources of the United States for 1888, Ninth Annual Report,
1887-88, and Tenth Annual Report, 1888-’89, have been published dur¬
ing the year.

The following are the publications designated :

Eleventh Annual Report of the U. S. Geological Survey, 1889-90, by J. W. Powell.
Monograph xvii, The Flora of the Dakota Group, a posthumous work, by Leo
Lesquereux.

BULLETINS.

58. The Glacial Boundary in Western Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and
Illinois, by George Frederick Wright, with an introduction by Thomas Chrow-
der Chamberlin.

62. The Greenstone Schist Areas of the Menominee and Marquette Regions of Mich¬

igan, a contribution to the subject of dynamic metamorphism in eruptive
rocks, by George Huntington Williams, with an introduction by Roland Duer
Irving.

63. A Bibliography of Paleozoic Crustacea from 1698 to 1889, including a list of

North American species and a systematic arrangement of genera, by Anthony
W. Vogdes.

142

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

64. A report of work done in tke Division of Chemistry and Physics, mainly during

the fiscal year 1888-’89. F. W. Clarke, chief chemist.

65. Stratigraphy of the Bituminous Coal Fields of Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West

Virginia, by Israel C. White.

66. On a Group of Volcanic Rocks from the Tewan Mountains, New Mexico, and on

the Occurrence of Primary Quartz in Certain Basalts, by Joseph Paxson Id-
dings.

67. The Relations of the Traps of the Newark System in the New Jersey Region, by

Nelson Horatio Darton.

68. Earthquakes in California in 1869, by James Edward Keeler.

69. A Classed and Annotated Bibliography of Fossil Insects, by Samuel Hubbard

Scudder.

70. Report on Astronomical Work of 1889 and 1890, by Robert Simpson Woodward.

71. Index to Known Fossil Insects of the World, including Myriapods and Arachnids,

by Samuel Hubbard Scudder.

72. Altitudes between Lake Superior and the Rocky Mountains, by Warren Upliam.

73. The Viscosity of Solids, by Carl Barus.

74. The Minerals of North Carolina, by Frederick Augustus Genth.

75. Record of North American Geology for 1887 to 1889, inclusive, by Nelson Horatio

Darton.

76. A Dictionary of Altitudes in the United States (second edition), compiled by

Henry Gannett.

77. The Texan Permian and its Mesozoic Types of Fossils, by Charles A. White.

78. A report of work done in the Division of Chemistry and Physics, mainly during

the fiscal year 1889-90. F. W. Clarke, chief chemist.

79. A Late Volcanic Eruption in Northern California, and its peculiar lava, by J. S.

Diller.

80. Correlation papers — Devonian and Carboniferous, by Henry Shaler Williams.

81. Correlation papers — Cambrian, by Charles Doolittle Walcott.

82. Correlation paper — Cretaceous, by Charles A. White.

Respectfully,

W. A. Croffut, Editor.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

REPORT OF MR. CHAS. C. DARWIN.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Division of Library and Documents,

Washington, D. C., June 30, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to present the following statement of work
done during the past year in this division and its three branches of
Library, Documents, and Correspondence:

LIBRARY.

The growth of the library this year is the largest in its history and
has required the removal of one class division into a room separate from
the main library. The accession of pamphlets has made necessary the
transfer of the pamphlet collection to one of the document rooms and
the construction of additional cases for its preservation ; the largely in-

DARWIN.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

143

creased number of maps lias broken tbe simple arrangement heretofore
followed and required the erection of new cases in a separate room.
Thus the books and maps handled daily are now stored in four rooms
instead of in one as formerly.

The total number of accessions for the year in books, pamphlets, and
maps is 7,717, making the contents of the library as shown below:

Contents of the library June 30, 1891.

Books.

Pamphlets.

Maps.

Total.

27, 515

37, 957
3, 060

20, 000

85, 472

Received 1890-’91 by exchange .

1,471

649

200

> 2, 337

7, 717

29, 635

41, 217

22, 337

93, 189

The average circulation is now about 1,060 volumes per month.

Seven hundred books were sent to the Government bindery during
the year and 1,048 volumes returned bound — including 496 of those sent
last year.

The cataloguing is fully up to date.

DOCUMENTS.

The list of publications of the Survey corrected to June 30, 1891, is
given in the advertisement to this volume.

Exchange. — Four thousand live hundred and thirty-one books and
pamphlets and a number of maps have been received during the year
by exchange and 8,116 sent out.

The library has distributed publications by way of exchange as fol¬

lows:

Exchange distribution.

Monograph I .

Mineral Resources, 1888

Bulletin 58 .

Bulletin 59 .

Bulletin 60 .

Bulletin 61 .

Bulletin 63 .

Bulletin 64 .

Bulletin 66 .

Ninth Annual Report ..

Copies.
736
738
738
738
738
738
738
738
738
1, 476

Total . - . 8, 116

United States atlas sheets . 3, 486

Total . 11,602

Sales. — The sale account shows that 4,187 copies of survey publica¬
tions have been sold during the last year as against 2,931 sold during
the year preceding.

144

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Free distribution. — 34,689 volumes and 2,600 proofs of atlas sheets
have been distributed gratuitously. This includes twenty sets of the
following: Monographs n to xn, Bulletins 1 to 40, and Mineral Be-
sources for 1882, 1883-?84, 1885, and 1886, and eight hundred sets of the
following: Monographs i, xm to xvi, Mineral Resources for 1887 and
for 1888, and Bulletins 41 to 64, making 27,520 volumes, all of which
were furnished to the Secretary of the Interior for distribution to the
libraries entitled to receive them under the “joint resolution to distri¬
bute copies of special memoirs and reports of the U. S. Geological
Survey.”

The work done by the document branch of the library during the
year is exhibited in the following table :

Publications distributed in 1890-91.

Books distributed gratuitously . 34, 689

Books sent out in exchange . 8, 116

Books sold . 4, 187

Proofs of atlas sheets sent gratuitously . 2, 600

Proofs of atlas sheets sent in exchange . 3, 486

Total number of books and maps distributed . 53, 078

The correspondence of the division has amounted to 11,110 letters sent
and 17,345 letters received, a daily average of over 36 letters sent and
over 56 letters received. The files and indexes of these letters and the
records of publications distributed are fully up to date.

Recapitulation.

LIBRARY.

Accessions :

Books . 2, 120

Pamphlets . 3, 260

Maps . 2, 337

Making total contents . 93, 189

Documents.

Received from Public Printer . 59, 000

Distributed by exchange . 8, 116

Distributed gratuitously . 34, 689

Sold . 4, 187

Atlas sheets distributed . 6, 086

Correspondence.

Letters received . 17, 345

Letters sent out . 11, 110

I am, sir, very respectfully,

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

Chas. C. Darwin,

Librarian.

MORSELL.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

145

REPORT OF MR. W. F. MORSELL.

U. S. Geological Survey,

Miscellaneous Division,
Washington, I). C., June 30, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit the following- report of work done in
the Miscellaneous Division during- the year ending- June 30, 1891.

The business of the division falls mainly under two general heads,
(1) the keeping of records of correspondence, of appointments, and of
attendance and leaves of absence, and (2) the framing and writing of
letters, reports, etc.

The number of letters received and recorded during the year was 3,050,
a daily average of 10, the total being about the same as last year. The
number of outgoing letters and reports recorded is about the same as the
number received. About half of these were written in the Miscellaneous
Division while the other half, though signed by the Director or the Chief
Clerk, were written in other divisions and merely recorded and mailed
in the Miscellaneous Division. The records of letters sent and letters
received are twofold records, consisting each of a bound register and a
card brief. This system, after long trial, is found to be simple, accurate,
and satisfactory. Appointments, original and other, to the number of
125 or thereabouts, were recorded, as were also the resignations and
other separations of the year, and a brief record of persons temporarily
employed without formal appointment was also kept. The system of
record used for appointments is, like that for the correspondence, a two¬
fold one. The keeping of the record of attendance and leaves of absence
consumed about half the time of one clerk, being a task of considerable
detail.

In addition to the general correspondence above referred to there were
compiled each month for the Secretary of the Interior three reports, viz,
(1) the monthly report of the operations of the Survey, (2) the report of
employees and changes in personnel, and (3) (until quite recently, when
the Department abandoned the requirement) a report of attendance.

In addition to the work above indicated much work of a miscellaneous
character was done by the division, including shorthand dictations
received from various officers, the copying of manuscripts and perma¬
nent indices, the dra wing of requisitions on the Department for the Sur¬
vey printing, etc.

I am, with respect, your obedient servant,

Wm. F. Morsell,

In charge.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director.

12 geol - 10

146

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

REPORT OF MR. JNO. D. McCHESNEY.

United States Geological Survey,

Washington, I). C., July 30, 1891.

Sir : I have the honor to submit herewith a detailed statement of the
expenditures from the appropriation for the U. S. Geological Survey
for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1891, amounting to $618,615.33.
Very respectfully,

Jno. D. McChesney,

Chief Disbursing Clerk.

Hon. J. W. Powell,

Director U. S. Geological Survey.

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, chief disbursing clerk V. S.
Geological Survey, during the fiscal year 1890-91.

SALARIES, OFFICE OF DIRECTOR.

Date.

Voucher.

1890.

July 31

Aug. 15

Sept. 27

Oct, 4

Nov. 17

Dec. 30

1891.

Jan. 31

Feb. 28

Mar. 31

Apr. 15

May 29

June 30

To whom x»aid.

For what paid.

G. P. Marvine .

May S. Clark .

Pay roll of employes

John I). Sheehan _

Pay roll of employes

May S. dark .

Pay roll of employes

J. D. Harrover .

May S. Clark .

Pay roll of employes
Henry A. Connor' . .

May S. Clark .

Pay roll of employes
_ do .

Services, July, 1890 .

...do .

. . .do .

Services, August 1 to 14, 1890 .

Services, August, 1890 .

. . .do .

Services, September, 1890 .

Services, September 27 to 30, 1890. .

Services, September, 1890 .

Services, October, 1890 .

Services, November 1 to 15, 1890 . . .

Services, October, 1890 .

Services, November, 1890 .

Services, December, 1890 .

Amount.

$60. 60
60.60
2, 831. 60
27. 39
2, 816. 00
60. 60
2, 643. 80
5.22
58. 80
2, 695. 20
24. 46
60. 60
2, 660. 20
2, 945. 97

_ do .

- do .

J. D. Harrover .

Pay roll of employes

_ do .

G. P. Marvine .

Services, January, 1891
Services, February, 1891 . . .

Services, March, 1891 .

Services, April 1 to 10, 1891

Services, April, 1891 .

Services, May, 1891 .

Services, June, 1891 .

...do .

3, 060. 30

2, 764. 40

3, 060. 30

13. 19

2, 916. 12

3, 026. 30
2, 870. 05

59. 30

Total

34, 721. 00

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.

July 21
22
24
24
24
28
28

J. Stanley Brown .

Traveling expenses .

J. S. Diller .

....do..... .

A. Carlisle & Co .

Goldberg, Bowen & Co .

Isaiah Rendall .

Golden Gate Woolen Manufac-

turing Company.

Isaiah Rendall . .

Joseph Sell wood .

Northern Pacific R. R .

J. Stanley Brown .

Services, July, 1890 .

C. Whitman Cross .

Lawrence C. Johnson .

... do .

Bailey Willis .

.... do .

N. S. Shaler .

. . . .do .

H. W. Turner . .

_ do .

W. Lindgren .

- do .

$15. 00
89. 75
72. 05
6. 45
58. 23
58. 81
62. 32
15. 00

100. 00
25. 01
87. 80
101. 10
168. 50
117.90
252. 70
270. 00
134. 80
134. 80

JFCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

147

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

1890.
July 31
31

J. S. Diller .

_ do .

W. J. McGee .

_ _ do .

_ do .

J. B. Hatcher .

_ do .

F. Berger .

_ _ do .

H. Gibb .

. . .do .

Peter Olsen .

. . . .do .

F. H. Knowlton .

_ do .

. . .do .

. . . .do .

F. C. Boyce .

.... do .

_ do .

A. C.Peale .

Washington Gaslight Co . . .

Laboratoiy supplies .

Services, July, 1890 .

... .do .

W. S. Bayley .

.... do .

Services, July, 1890 .

Walter 11. Weed .

_ do... _ .

_ do .

_ _ do .

_ _ do . . .

_ do .

_ _ do .

... .do .

_ do .

. . . .do .

_ do .

. . . .do .

. do .

... .do .

John Tyner .

Services, July 1 to 15, 1890 .

Charles Atclieson .

Services, July 1 to 14, 1890 . .

William B. Clark .

Services, July, 1890 .

Field subsistence .

Services, J uly, 1890 .

Total .

Amount.

$202. 20
202. 20
237. 00
252. 70
337. 00
250. 00
80. 00
70. 00
65. 00
55. 00
55. 00
117. 90
210. 60
151. 60
126. 40
151.60

150. 00
29. 67
25. 00

100. 00
60. 00
100. 00
148. 80
43. 26
117. 90
75. 80
135. 00
337. 00
101. 10
53. 22
46. 90
168. 50

151. 60
589. 70

817. 10
1,182. 60
1, 369. 77
1, 171.50
1, 111.30

799. 70
370. 60
29. 03
27. 09
125. 00
19. 88

181. 10

14, 063. 54

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

1890.

July 31 ]

1 i Pay roll of employes .

. $803. 10

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, special disbursing agent U. S. Geological

Survey, during the month of July, 1S90.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
July 14
19
30
30

30
29

31
29
29
29

Traveling expenses .

Services, July .

L. M. Hoskins .

_ do . .

C. T. Reid .

_ do .

G. E. Hyde .

_ do .

W. W. Maxwell .

... .do .

Charles M. Yeates .

... .do .

Thomas C. Nelson .

- do .

$9. 90
1,900. 00
134. 80
108. 00
70. 80
1 5. 80
176. 90
25. 00
151.60
50. 00

148

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Y oucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
July 30
30

Services, July, 1890 .

$60. 00
101. 10

_ do .

_ _ do .

168. 50

. . . .do .

375. 40

310. 40

_ do .

320. 44

. . . .do .

161. 10

. . . .do .

304. 82

307. 70

487. 40

_ do .

469. 30

9.9.

_ do .

305. 12

_ do .

266. 90

_ do .

491. 60

_ _ do .

231. 10

. . . .do .

395. 60

_ _ do .

252. 90

_ do .

155. 80

. . . .do .

84. 20

.... do .

134. 80

_ do .

50. 00

_ _ do .

145. 80

_ do .

323. 70

_ do .

193. 70

K. Lee Longstreet .

_ do .

101. 10

_ do .

3, 544. 85
242. 90

_ do .

W.^A. Callahan .

. . . .do .

4. 84

. . . .do .

.... do .

117. 90

46. 30

. . .do .

_ do... ‘ .

39. 15

. .do .

_ do .

40. 50

_ do .

121. 70

_ do .

120. 75

_ do .

99. 00

. _ do .

_ do .

80. 64

8. 35

66. 26

E. C. Barnard .

_ do. * .

66. 08

94. 26

Pay roll, Murlin .

308. 70

13, 979. 26

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, chief disbursing clerk U. S.

Geological Survey, during August, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.

Kapli ael Pumpelly .

Services, July, 1890 .

Frank Leveret! .

_ do . .

W. S. Bay ley .

S. F. Emmons .

. . . .do .

11. B. Hitz .

_ do .

T. Nelson Bale .

_ do .

Bailey Willis .

_ do .

_ do' .

J. S. 1 tiller .

... .do .

William T. Finch .

(L W. Metcalf .

A. Hermann .

William P. Rust .

....do...! . ! .

Warren Uphani .

_ do .

Alplieus Hyatt .

_ _ do .

Pay roll of employes .

Joseph A. Holmes .

W. H. Snyder .

_ do .

J. E. Wolff .

Collier Cobh .

_ do .

George H. Williams .

_ do .

Gilbert Van Ingen .

. . . .do .

12-

• 24

William H. Hobbs .

Services, J uly 7 to 31, 1890 .

$337. 00
135. 00
43.50
81.65
86. 65
28. 20
29. 62
103. 56
147. 54
3.00
17.41
84. 20
81. 00
101. 10
250. 00
25. 46
100. 00
135. 00
50.00
117. 90
50. 00
135. 00
75. 00
80.64

IvrCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

149

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY — Continued.

Date.

1890.
Aug. 12
14
14
14

16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
19
18
21
22
23

29
27

30
30
30
30
30
30
30

30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

R. S. Tarr .

James M. Salford .

Services, July 2 to 25, 1890 .

J. A. Merrill .

Services, July, 1890 .

F. W. Clarke .

Traveling expenses .

IV. H. Hobbs .

.... do _ A .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co .

Transportation of assistants. ..

Aug. F. Foerste .

Traveling expenses . .

J. 15. Woodworth .

Services, J uly, 1890 .

R. E. Dodge .

_ do .

Edmund O. Hovey .

.... do .

W. T. Lander .

William Orr, ir .

Services, July 11 to 31, 1890 . .

Aug. F. Foerste .

Services, July 14 to 31, 1890

Paul M. Jones .

Services, July, 1890 .

John M. Hopkins .

Herbert Lowell Rich .

_ do .

S. F. Morine .

Shoeing, etc .

John H. Klemroth .

Traveling expenses .

Charles D. Walcott .

_ do _ _ ~. .

Lewis S. Hayden .

Publication .

New York Central and Hudson

Transportation of assistants .

River R. R.

Northern Pacific R. R .

_ uo .

George Cartner .

Publications .

E. J. Pullman .

Supplies .

David T. Day .

Traveling expenses .

Samuel H. Sc.udder .

Services, August, 1890 . .

...do .

T. W. Stanton .

_ do .

F. H. Knowlton .

_ do .

Ira Sayles .

_ do .

Joseph F. James .

_ do .

Eimer &. Amend .

Laboratory supplies .

De Lancey W. Gill .

Traveling expenses .

Pay roll of employes .

Services, August, 1890 . .

_ _ do .

_ .do . .

.... do .

_ do .

... .do .

_ do . .

_ _ do .

. . . .do .

.... do .

_ do .

Total .

Amount.

$34. 00
92.91
50. 00
39. 75
17.60
46. 27

29. 50
16. 30
50. 00
50. 00
75. 00
75. 00

9. 00
58. 06
25. 00
30. 00
48.40
30. 00

54.50
15. 70
84. 72

5. 00
63. 00

88. 40
7. 50
21. 29
35. 01
210. 60

151.60
75. 80

117.90
117.90
101. 10
20. 76
20. 50
589. 70

182. 60
55. 09

, 370. 00
( 013. 10
111.30
799. 70
370. 60

10, 758. 59

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

1890.

Aug. 30

Pay roll of employes .

. Services, August, 1890 .

$803.10

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, special disbursing agent U. S. Geological

Survey, during August, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Aug. 16
16

Field expenses .

$90. 80
142. 02

_ do .

79.84
63. 35

_ do .

.. do .

. . . .do .

104. 52

_ do .

91.82

_ do .

154. 57

_ do .

86. 37

_ _ do .

132. 32

_ do .

113. 52

_ do .

62. 38

_ _ do .

86.75

_ do . . .

60.25

....do . r. .

_ do .

55. 75

150

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR IJ. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

1890.

Ail};- 16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30

[Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

20
21
22

Traveling expenses .

Field supplies .

... do .

W F McDonald .

Mrs C E Smith .

do .

28
29

do .

Lincoln Martin .

do . 1

William Kramer .

Albert M. Walker .

S. S. Gannett .

M . 33 . Lam bert .

Robert 1). Cummin .

. do .

Ewing Sneed .

W. F. Shoemaker .

R. O. Gordon .

Charles F. Urquhart .

...do...: . 1

George T. Hawkins .

H. S. Wallace .

...do . .

A. E. Wilson .

...do .

H. B. Blair .

William H. Herron .

Van H. Manning, jr .

do .

. . .do .

G. E. Hyde .

H. C. Harrison .

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

Z. H. Gilman .

S. S. Gannett .

Thomas C. Nelson .

Mrs. C. E. Smith .

W. W. Maxwell .

G. E. Hyde .

_ do .

R. Lee Longstreet .

Hersey Munroe .

. . . .do .

S. S. Gannett .

Pay roll, Lambert .

. . . .do .

Pay roll, Nell .

_ _ do .

Pay roll, Murlin .

... .do .

_ do .

Pay roll, Cummin .

Pay roll, Baldwin .

. . . .do .

Payroll, Barnard .

_ do .

Amount.

61.

20.

12.

62.

25.

40.
25.
91.

134.

131.

103.

113.

86.

164.

30.

45.

97.

21.

48.
36.
69.

170.

15.
7.

125.

71.

90.

133.

148.

235.

36.

50.

82.

180.

49.
122.
200.

16.
89.

152.

221.

162.

47.

16.

12.

41.

39.

40.
102.
151.

50.
25.
25.
75.
19.

101.

84.

168.

210.

160.

266.

310.
375.
469.
348.
491.
193.
105.
219.

311.
445.
395.
487.

17
00
00
50
00
00
00
43
30
53

31
66
67
00

46
71
81
63
97

96
28
63
65
00
10
40
15
60
75
75

24
15

30
90
25

18
75

31
52
00
75
00
00
45
00
60
60
00
00
00
80
35
10

20
50
60
60
80
90
to
40
30
70
60
70
80
80
60
12
60
40

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

151

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
Aug. 30
30

$352. 40
22. 52

Pay roll, Wright .

Services, July, 1890 .

242. 90

Pay roll, Herron .

.... do . .

307. 70

Pay roll, Kramer .

_ _ do .

161. 10

Pay roll, Hawkins .

252. 90

Pay roll, Manning .

_ _ do .

161. 10

100

Pay roll, Harrison .

_ _ do .

193. 70

101

Pay roll, TJrquhart .

_ _ do .

231. 10

102

Pay roll, Wilson .

_ _ do .

145. 80

103

Pay roll, Peters .

297. 60

104

3, 222. 27
231. 90

105

Glenn S. Smith .

Field expenses .

Totnl _

16, 950. 64

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent U. S. Geological

Survey, during August, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Aug. 31
31

$412. 80
75. 80

Pay roll of employes .

Services, July, 1890 .

177. 89

Total .

666. 49

Abstract of disbursements made by C. I). Davis, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during August, 1S90.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Aug. 19
19

Francis P. fting .

_ do . .

Y7. M. Davis .

... .do .

Traveling expenses .

K. F. Dodge .

...do...?.... .

Aug. F. Foerste .

....do .

. . . .do .

_ .do .

. . . .do .

c. tv. Hayes

.... do .

_ do .

J. E. Todd . . .

R. S. Tarr .

. . . .do .

H. W. Turner .

. . . .do .

_ _ do .

W. H. Snyder . .

Aug. F. Foerste .

....do .

$90. 00
45.00

25. 00
18.55
48.61
44. 53
36. 35
49.04

375. 89
10.28

126. 90
8.85

146. 27
256. 10
76. 85
20. 55
49. 01
11.05
47.45
36. 57
52. 50

50. 15

44.50
46. 72

26. 70

24.51
49.74
49. 79
55. 70

125. 85
158. 95
6. 66
18. 56
4.96

48.16
26. 40

152

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.

Aug. 30

Pay roll of employes .

Services, August, 1890 .

$817. 10

_ do .

151. 60

G. F. Becker .

...do .

337. 00

W. J. McGee .

_ do .

252. 70

.... do .

202. 20

I C Russell

_ do .

202. 20

_ do .

168. 50

. . . .do .

134. 80

F. C. Boyce .

_ do .

60. 00

... .do .

117. 90

168. 50

... do .

151. 60

_ do .

101. 10

_ do .

134. 80

William S. Hall .

. . . .do .

100. 00

T. Nelson Dale .

150. 00

20. 00

Services, July, 1890 .

70. 16

63. 83

N. H. Barton .

.... do .

112. 23

Services, July, 1890 .

185. 30

Services, August, 1890 .

337. 00

_ do .

W. S. Bay ley .

_ do .

130. 00

. . . .do .

101. 10

61.45

. ..do

22. 00

J. M. Salford .

7 6 1 .

.... do .

40. 30

. . . .do .

28. 45

332. 70

...do...’. . 1 .

125. 00

_ _ do .

101. 10

N. S. Shaler .

- do .

260. 00

C. W. Coman .

Services, July, 1890 .

50. 00

Tot:.!

7, 678. 32

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, chief disbursing clerk U. S. Geo¬
logical Survey, during September, 1800.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Sept. 6

■ 8
8
10
10
15
18
27

30
30

8
9

14
16

20
21

John B. Rodgers .

■Washington Gaslight Co .

W. R. Sawyer . . .

William P". Rust .

C. C. Willard .

Z. D. Gilman .

M. R. Brown .

T. W. Stanton .

J. F. Manning .

P. H. Christie .

Norton Bros .

United States Express Co .

John C. Parker .

J. W. Queen &. Co .

James S. Hunter .

Charles S. Prosser .

C. B. White .

F. W. Clarke .

Samuel H. Scudder .

Harriet Biddle.

Ira Sayles .

J. Henry Blake
O. C. Marsh
. . . .do

W. L. Magoon
....do

O. A. Peterson

_ do .

J. B. Hatcher ,

Services, August 30 to September
6, 1890.

Laboratory supplies .

Hire of horse and wagon .

Services. August, 1890 .

Rent of office, August, 1890 .

Supplies .

Publications .

Traveling expenses .

Laboratory supplies .

Services, August 30, 31, 1890 .

Hire of horse and wagon .

Freight, July, 1890 .

Supplies .

Laboratory supplies .

Services, September 9 to 13, 1890 . . .

Traveling expenses .

Services, August, 1890 .

Traveling expenses .

Services, September, 1890 .

Services, July 1 to September 30,
1890.

Services, September, 1890

. . .do . .

Services, August, 1890 _

Services, September, 1890
Services, August, 1890. . .
Services, September, 1890
Services, August, 1890. . .
Services, September, 1890
Services, August, 1890 _

$33. 06

43. 38
26. 50
104. 00
266. 66
205. 37

1.50
120. 29

7.50
9. 75

12. 50
76. 30
.60
6. 75
15.00
102. 55
117.90
54.48
203. 80
30. 00

114. 20
146. 80
337. 00
326. 00
55. 00
55.00
65. 00
65. 00
250. 00

MrCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

153

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. 1). McChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR TJ. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

1890.
Sept. 30
30
30
30

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

J. 15. Hatcher . Services, September, 1890 .

W. H. Utterback . Services, August, 1890 . .

— do . Services, September, 1890 .

R. W. Westbrook . i Services, July 1 to September 30,

1890.

W. A. Washburne . do .

H. Gibb . Services, August 1 to September

30, 1890.

F. Berger . do . .

L. P. Bush . do .

T. A. Bostwick . Services, July 1 to September 30,

1890.

A. Hermann . Services, August 1 to September

30, 1890.

Baltimore and Ohio R. R. Co _ Transportation of assistant .

E. E. Jackson & Co . , Supplies for illustrations . .

Lester F. Ward . Traveling expenses

Washington Gaslight Co .

C. C. Willard .

Alpbeus Hyatt .

George W. Shutt .

_ do .

Amount.

William P. Rust .

Joseph F. James .

Pay roll of employes.

...do . .

_ do .

William Baumann . . .

James S. Smith .

Pay roll of employes.

. . . .'do .

_ do .

Total .

Laboratory supplies . .

Rent for September, 1890 .

Services, August, 1890 .

Services, July, 1890 .

Services, August 1 to September
30, 1890.

Services, September, 1890 .

- do .

.do.

Services, September 1 to 23, 1890

- do .

Services, September, 1890 .

_ do .

$250. 00
55. 00
55. 00
75. 00

90. 00
160. 00

160. 00
100. 00
250. 00

165. 80

70. 50
40. 00
200. 13
42. 63
266. 66
250. 00
252. 70
497. 30

104. 00
97. 80
570. 60
1, 154. 80
1, 245. 53
703. 77
40. 85
49.45
1, 171.40
1,077.40
775. 60
358. 80

13, 182. 61

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

1890.

Sept. 4
10
16
30

Z. I). Gilman .

$0. 80

E. Morrison .

. . . .do .

3. 00

53. 20

Pay roll of employes .

Services, September, 1890 .

771. 83

Total .

828. 83

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Earl, special disbursing agent U. S. Geological

Survey, during September, 1S90.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Sept. 4

Howard A, Graham .

Traveling expenses .

$7. 45
35. 80

....do .

... .do .

42. 98

143. 74

A. E. Murlin .

_ do .

52. 32

92. 36

_ _ do .

19. 89

_ _ do .

229. 43

103. 37

.... do .

_ do .

89. 27

14.70

102. 86

. . . .do .

_ do .

88. 24

C. G. Van Hook .

Traveling expenses .

29.45

T. B. Tribble .

_ do .

6. 55

199. 90

....do .

- do. ..." .

279. 10

154

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Antov Karl, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Dote.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
Sept. 15

Field expenses .

$85. 40
167. 14

Louis Kell .

_ do .

... .do .

. . . .do .

148. 99

Charles M. Beates .

. . . do .

143. 52

Traveling expenses .

21.35

... .do .

Field expenses .

81. 37

... .do .

_ do .

100. 78

... .do .

83.90

_ do .

62. 70

_ _ do .

116. 82

L. C. Fletcher .

_ do .

124. 63

. . . .do .

.... do .

86.58

. . . .do .

.... do .

96. 29

.... do .

124. 75

_ do .

90.82

... .do .

30. 45

_ do .

.... do .

29. 40

_ do .

. . . .do .

61.35

.... do .

95. 10

H. S. Wallace .

_ do. . . .

38. 90

.... do .

274. 85

H. B. Blair .

_ _ do .

158. 30

. . . .do .

63. 70

52. 09

.... do .

27. 10

136. 22

.... do .

92. 77

. . . .do . * .

_ do .

60. 00

51. 29

74. 95

... .do . T .

... .do .

54.25

C. T. Reid .

20. 45

Field expenses .

132. 20

_ do .

118. 75

.... do .

Services, August, 1890 .

35. 00

Amos L. Tittle .

Transportation .

51.75

Field expenses .

71.37

. . . .do .

_ do .

126. 58

12. 72

. . . .do .

6. 50

W. H Lovell

103. 00

Lincoln Martin .

_ do .

97. 00

A. F. Dudley .

_ do .

100. 00

22. 69

72.37

7. 05

’ 16

_ do .

Field expenses .

27. 37

J. J. Mason .

... .do .

54.50

Albert M. Walker .

.... do .

32. 90

10.43

M. B. Lambert .

...do .

8.30

. . . .do .

Field expenses .

175. 72

Ewing Speed .

.... do .

32. 07

. . . .do .

7. 00

W. M. Beaman .

Field expenses .

126. 61

Flournoy Bros .

100. 80

. . . .do .

W. F. Shoemaker .

Transportation .

36.12

Herbert M. Wilson .

Services, August, 1890 .

40. 76

Fauth & Co .

112. 50

Frank Sutton .

186. 56

Nannie M. Peyton .

Services, August, 1890 .

25. 00

The Chattanooga Saddlery Co . .
C. Ct. Van Hook .

Field supplies .

18. 00

66. 10

33. 95

Judson 1). Lincoln .

...do .

21. 70

H. S. Wallace .

89. 55

Anton Karl, pay roll .

Services, September, 1890 .

3, 681. 40
342. 60

A. E. Murlin, pay roll .

_ _ do .

John H. Renshawe . ....

_ do .

203. 80

George T. Hawkins, pay roll. . . .

_ _ do .

299. 20

R. O. Gordon, pay roll .

_ do .

392. 60

Glenn S. Smith, pay roll .

... .do .

103. 40

Thomas S. Clark. . . .

_ do .

25. 00

_ do .

45.45

A. A. Curtis .

20. 00

C.G. Van Hook .

.... do .

81. GO

M. Hackett, pay roll .

350. 40

R. M. Towson, pay roll .

...do .

239. 20

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

155

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR IT. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

V oucher.

To whom paid.

For wliat paid.

Amount.

1890.

Sept. 30

Louis Kell, pay roll .

5*414 HO

R. Lee Longstreet .

1)7 8)

100

Charles M.^Teates .

_ do .

146 8 )

101

William Kramer, pay roll .

_ do ..

102

L. C. Fletcher, pay roll .

_ do .

481 80

103

W. H. Lovell, payroll .

... .do .

3 1)4 20

104

M. 11. Lambert, pay roll .

_ do .

10 ) 00

105

W. W. Maxwell. . .

. . . .do

25 00

106

G. E. Hyde .

73 40

107

Thomas C. Kelson .

5 ) 00

108

_ do .

8 00

109

Robert 1). Cummin, pay roll ....

.... do .

165 40

110

Charles E. Cooke, pay roll .

_ do . .

192 8)

111

_ do .

1ST 60

112

380 20

113

Frank Sutton, pay roll .

_ do .

187. 60

114

H. B. Blair, pay* roll .

_ do .

338. 8 >

115

Van II. Mannin*;, jr., pay roll . . .

_ do .

157. 80

116

Philip Vasa Moll on .

50. 00

117

R. Lee Longstreet .

54 80

118

R.O. Gordon .

_ do...! .

304. 85

119

Louis Kell .

.... do .

169. 47

120

Van H. Manning, jr .

.... do .

338. 00

121

William H. Herron .

_ do .

56. 00

122

M. Hackett .

.... do .

427. 74

123

89. 40

124

. . . .do .

... .do .

6. 30

125

Charles M. Yeates .

236. 12

126

L. C. Fletcher .

.... do .

133. 20

127

. . . .do .

. do ..

54. 30

128

129

Joseph W. Jones .

_ do. . . . .

9. 39

Total .

18, 138. 61

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during September, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.

Sept. 3
3
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
G
6
6
6
8
8
8
8
9
9
9
9
9

8
9

14
13
16

20
21
22

G.K. Gilbert .

Arthur Keith .

.T. M. Saft'ord .

R. S. Tarr .

J. M. Hopkins .

W. T. Lander .

J.E. Wolff .

Benjamin G. Palmer . .

C. L. Whittle .

P. M. Jones .

Gilbert van Ingen

W. R. Lee Porter .

Francis 1’. King .

Charles Oley: . . .

Harry W. Wentworth
Richard McCulloch . . .

J. B. Woodworth .

Pay roll of employes. .
. . . .'do . .’ _

Traveling expenses . .

. . .do .

Services, August, 1890

.. .do .

...do .

. . .do .

...do .

. . .do .

. . -do .

. . .do .

...do .

Henry B. llitz ....
Albert P. Brigham

R. S. Tarr. . . . .

J. B. Woodworth . .

S. F. Emmons .

_ do .

A. P. Baker .

Joseph Sellwood..

. . . .do .

Raphael Pumpelly
Warreu Upham . . .
Aug. F. Foerste. . .

. . . .do .

Bailey Willis .

J. M. Safford .

C. W. Hayes .

Traveling expenses

. . . .do .

....do .

j _ do .

I Field expenses .

Office rent, August, 1890

Subsistence .

J Supplies .

Office supplies .

Services, August, 1890 . .

_ do .

Traveling expenses _

Field expenses .

Traveling expenses ....
Field expenses .

$80. 60
50. 45
78.26
50.00
14. 52
38. 71
93. 11
25. 00
100. 00
15.32
75. 00
69. 68
45. 00
90.00
60. 00
60. 00
50. 00

256. 10
100. 00

51.55

42. 55
97. 85
68. 92
76. 60
17. 00

43. 75
23. 19
28.39

14.55

101.10
100. 00

59. 59
110. 17
45. 72
113. 03

156

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis , etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

1890.

Sept. 9

100

101

102

103

104

105

106

107

108

109

110

To whom paid.

W.J. McGee .

J. E. Wold' .

_ do .

Raphael Pumpelly. . . .

W. P. Jenney . .

Collier Cobb .

Benjamin K. Emerson

T. Nelson Dale .

S. Ward Loper .

_ do .

E. O. Hovey .

- do .

H. L. Rich .

_ do .

George W. Metcalfe . . .

N. H. Darton . .

Joseph H. Perry .

R. D. Salisbury . .

J. A. Merrill .

W. M. Davis .

- do .

Charles S. Merrick _

S. H. Davis . .

R. E. Dodge .

H. W. Turner .

W. T. Turner .

Julius Dfister .

William Orr, jr .

Joseph H. Perry .

William Orr, jr .

Moritz Fischer .

Arthur Bibbins .

C. W. Coman . .

G. K. Gilbert .

J. H. Drummond .

Joseph Sellwood .

J. E. Todd .

Gilbert van Ingen
Richard McCulloch...

W. Lindgren .

J. S. DiUer .

I. C. Russell . .

W. Lindgren .

H. W. Turner . .

Seth. C. Hathaway _

F. C. Boyce .

J. Stanley Brown

C. Whitman Cross _

N. H. Darton .

George H. Eldridge . .
Lawrence C. Johnson

Mark B. Kerr .

Walter H. Weed .

G. F. Becker . .

W. J. McGee .

Pay roll of employes .

. . . .'do .

_ do .

A. C. Peale .

Charles S. Merrick _

W. R. Lee Porter . .

William H. Hobbs _

Morrison Brothers

N. H. Darton . .

Arthur Bibbins .

W. H. Snyder .

R.E. Dodge .

_ do . .

J. B. Woodworth .

William B. Clark .

N. S. Slialer .

Lawrence C. Johnson

Francis P. King .

George E. Luther _

C. R. Van Hise . .

Total

For what paid.

Amount.

Traveling expenses . .

Field supplies .

Traveling expenses . .
Services, August, 1890

...do . .

. . .do . .

...do .

...do . .

_ do .

Traveling expenses . .

. . .do .

$161. 73
8. 01
23. 25
337. 00
185. 30
50. 00
100. 00
48. 49
72. 57
44.17
39. 05

Services, August, 1890
. . .do .

75. 00
46. 78

Traveling expenses .

. . .do .

Services, August, 1890 .

Services, July and August, 1890 _

Services, July 7 to September 9, 1890.

Services, August, 1890 .

...do .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do .

. . -<lo .

Field expenses .

Services, July 23 to August 31, 1890.

Services, August 1-21, 1890 .

Services, August 1 to September 1,
1890.

33. 76
37.76
126. 40
106. 00
275. 00
35.48
20. 00
15. 04
63. 08
32. 52
68.83
78. 61
32. 25
27. 09
14.00

Traveling expenses .

- do .

— do .

Services, July and August, 1890 _

Services, August, 1890 .

Traveling expenses .

Services, September 1-14, 1890 .

Field expenses . .

Cash paid for services .

Field expenses .

Services, September 1-15, 1890 .

Field expenses .

Services, September, 1890 .

_ do .

57. 73
33. 38
20. 55
88. 71
50. 00
24.06
35. 00
17.44
24.20
11.97
30. 00
152. 97
195. 60
195. 60
130. 40
130. 40

Services, August 24 to September
30, 1890.

Services, September, 1890 .

_ do .

— do .

_ do .

...do .

_ do .

Services, August, 1890 .

Services, September 1 to 10, 1890 _

Services, September 1 to 5, 1890. . .

Subsistence .

Traveling expenses .

Services, September, 1890 .

Traveling expenses .

Services, August, 1890 .

Services, September, 1890 .

_ do .

50. 32

60. 00
97. 80
103. 00
122. 20
163. 00
114. 20
146. 80
146. 80
326. 00
244. 60
790. 80
1, 066. 70
324. 60
163. 00
52. 00
20. 00
16. 66
25. 62
145. 31
50. 00
32. 90
50. 00
50. 00
50. 00
125. 00
260. 00

Traveling expenses .

Services, September, 1890

...do .

. . .do .

45. 76
45. 00
97.80
326. 00

11, 074. 76

MjCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

157

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent U. S. Geological

Survey, during September, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR IJ. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
Sept. 19
19

Services, July, 1890 .

$168. 50
122. 50

J. K. Biering .

Pasturage .

16. 00

Services, July, 1890 .

210. 00

Total .

517. 00

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. liizer, disbursing agent U. S. Geological Survey,

during September, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Sept. 17
17
17
17

20
20
20
20
20
20
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
22
24
24
24
24

26
26
26
26
26
26
27
27
30
30
30
30

.'in

William B. Lane .

Field expenses .

Supplies .

Forage .

Stuart P. Johnson .

Field expenses .

Traveling expenses . .

W. Sc L. E. Gurley .

Material .

C. H. Stone .

Traveling expenses .

F.M. Smith .

_ do .

_ _ do .

L. B. Kendall .

. . . .do .

Field expenses .

Reclick H. McKee .

Traveling expenses .

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

_ do .

_ _ do .

P. V. S. Bartlett .

_ do .

C. S. Woodrow .

Supplies .

. . . .do .

G. T. Nash .

Kennedy Sc Orr .

Supplies .

B. F. A cuff Sc Co .

Subsistence .

. . . .do .

W. H. Sanders .

Supplies .

S. C. Gallup .

Supplies and material _

J. M. Killin & Co .

_ do .

Wilson Sc Barnard .

.... do .

Willard D. Johnson .

Field expenses .

...do .

.... do .

Kennedy Sc Orr .

Repairs and supplies .

R. C. McKinney .

Field expenses .

William H. Herron .

_ do. . .t .

Jno. W. Hays .

_ do .

Charles Him rod .

Subsistence .

E. T, Perkins, jr .

Traveling expenses . .

Robert J. Breckenridge .

... .do .

Stuart P. Johnson .

Field expenses .

A. F. Duunington .

_ do .

Willard D. Johnson .

_ do .

Redick H. McKee .

_ do .

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

_ do .

Nichols & Yager .

Supplies .

R. C. McKinney .

Traveling expenses _

T. E. Grafton .

_ do .

W. B. Corse .

_ _ do .

Jeremiah Ahern .

.... do .

Frank E. Gove .

.... do .

R. H. Chapman .

FielcT expenses .

William j. Peters .

Traveling expenses .

Pay roll .

Services .

. . . . do .

_ _ do .

....do .

_ do .

_ _ do .

....do

... .do .

. . . .do .

E. T. Perkins, jr .

. . . .do .

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

Services .

$15. 50
42. 85
25. 20

95.48

72. 55

43.40
24. 25
14. 00

15. 50

18.40
40.00

45. 55
126. 25

6. 50

44.40
43. 29
49. 75
26. 05

19. 75
16. 96
10. 73

157. 90
115. 95
29. 32
24.61

20. 00

252. 10
36.34
55. 90

108. 40

128. 71
138. 19
192. 47

29. 95
68. 95

123. 23

71.95

44.85

22. 25
93. 37
39. 53

47.45

62. 46

63.85
20. 00
26. 50

26. 50
59. 70
26. 00

25. 25

33. 49

27.85
9. 25

1,037.20
364. 16
260. 93

334. 72
280. 56

139. 10

1, 220. 00

87. 03

158

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. Eizer,etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL, SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
Sept. 30
30

Services .

$47.90
40. 00

_ _ do .

_ do .

191. 36

Traveling: expenses .

5.45

78. 29

_ do .

78. 29

. . . .do .

173. 87

_ _ do .

316. 03

_ _ do .

273. 01

.. do

_ do .

231. 52

do .

_ do .

171. 19

_ do .

126. 19

_ do .

324. 02

_ _ do .

227. 33

_ .do .

369. 20

_ _ do .

227. 80

_ do .

231. 20

_ do .

502. 10

. . . .do .

.... do .

366. 51

C. H Fitch

156. 58

_ do .

130. 40

_ do .

31. 87

_ do .

109. 66

.... do .

372. 65

... do .

.... do .

289. 78

_ do .

183. 71

.... do .

_ do .

234. 75

.... do .

_ do .

306. 80

_ _ do .

173. 87

Paul Holman .

_ do . : .

72. 97

_ _ do .

18. 33

3. 33

B. F. Buckner, jr .

.... do .

3.33

Field expenses .

37. 50

....do .

159. 45

Frank Tweedy .

.... do .

146. 33

.... do .

77. 08

.... do .

51.25

100

Back, Corny & Co .

125.54

101

J. H. McKnight & Co .

Material .

295. 05

102

G. T. Nash .

Supplies .

35.44

103

R. U. Goode .

Services .

203. 80

104

P. V. S. Bartlett .

98. 56

105

W. T. Griswold .

_ do .

53. 07

106

... .do .

_ do .

62. 50

107

Willard J). Johnson .

. . . .do .

138. 18

108

R. B. Marshall .

_ do .

64.50

109

R. C. McKinney .

_ do .

70. 83

110

Spratten <fc Anderson .

Supplies .

12. 60

111

. .t .do .

22. 59

112

_ do .

.... do .

61.25

113

... .do .

81.32

114

S. C. Gallup . .

Supplies .

80. 00

115

Andrew McClelland .

_ do .

95.26

116

B. F. Acuff & Co .

Subsistence .

52. 95

117

. . . .do .

.... do .

45. 88

118

. . . do .

10. 36

119

Oppenlander & Rehm .

Subsistence .

23. 98

120

J ul. Rehm & Co .

.... do .

37.75

121

W. H. Hyde ...••• .

39.65

19.9.

Lewis Corvdou Leonard .

Material .

62.40

123

Frank Frates .

Subsistence .

57. 37

124

Kinman & Rickey .

_ _ do .

54. 10

125

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

Field expenses .

40. 77

126

J. B. Lippincott .

_ do .

93.73

127

Gross, Blackwell &. Co .

79.83

128

T. M. Bannon .

Services .

Total .

15, 395. 44

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

159

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, chief disbursing clerk, U. S.

Geological Survey, during October, 1890.

APPROPRIATION POR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

1890.
Oct. 4

To whom paid.

F. H. Newell .

C.D. White....
Cyrus C. Babb .

Joseph F. James .

Callie A. O’Laughlin .

W. B. Young .

C. W. Dashiell .

George Ryneal, jr .

F. H. Knowlton .

The Humboldt Publishing Co. . .

James M. Hamilton .

Chesapeake and Ohio R. R. Co . .
The American Tool and Machine
Co.

National Press Intelligence Co .

Fanny Gresham .

William D. Clark A Co .

Emil Greiner .

S. J. Haislett .

E. J. Pullman .

J. S. Bowen .

Pay roll of employes .

William M. Fontaine .

Pay roll of employes .

S. Ward Loper .

J. Bishop & Co .

Baker & Adamson .

Charles D. Walcott .

F. H. Knowlton .

L. H. Schneider’s Son .

L. Feuchtwanger A Co .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co .

Chicago and Northwestern R. R.
Co.

Eimer A Amend . .

United States Express Co .

J. Stanley Brown .

Henry s! Williams .

Wyckoff, Seamans A Benedict.

Newman A Son .

The Eastman Co .

Williams .Browne A Earle .

E. A. Schneider .

C. A. White .

Northern Pacific R. R. Co .

Hubbell, Merwin A Co .

Adams Express Co .

_ do .

Sam H. Scudder .

Ira Sayles .

J. Henry Blake .

William M. Fontaine . .

F. H. Knowlton . I _ do

For what paid.

Services, August 30 to September
30, 1890.

Traveling expenses .

Services, August 30 to September
30, 1890.

Traveling expenses .

Services, October 1 to 8, 1890 .

- do .

...do .

Supplies .

Services, September, 1890 .

Publications .

— do .

Transportation of assistants .

Laboratory supplies .

Newspaper clippings . .

Services, Sept. 22 to Oct. 9, 1890 .

Laboratory supplies .

_ do. . .

Topographic supplies .

Geologic supplies .

Services, October 1 to 13, 1890 .

_ do .

Services, July, August, and Sep¬
tember, 1890.

Services, October 1 to 15, 1890 .

Services, September 15 to 30, 1890. . .

Repairs to laboratory material .

Laboratory supplies .

Traveling expenses .

- do .

Supplies .

Laboratory supplies .

Transportation of assistants .

_ do . . .

Laboratory supplies .

Freight charges, August and Sep¬
tember, 1890.

Traveling expenses .

Services, July 1 to Sept, 30, 1890. . .

Services, packing typewriter .

Repairing caligraph .

Geologic supplies .

. . .do .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do .

Transportation of assistants .

Paleontologic supplies .

Freight charges, July and August,
1890.

Freight charges, September, 1890. . .

Services, October, 1890 . .

_ do .

do .

A. H. Storer .

C. C. Willard .

Pay roll of employes .

O. C. Marsh .

H. Gibb .

F. Berger .

O. A. Peterson .

J. B. Hatcher .

L. P. Bush .

W. H. Utterback .

George W. Shutt .

Cyrus C. Babb .

Pay roll of employes .

. .do .

. -do .

. .do .

...do .

Supplies for mineral resources.

Rent of office rooms .

Services, October, 1890 .

_ do .

.do.

Amount.

$173. 87

280. 11
63. 87

82.12

17.64
19. 98
23. 22

304. 10
114. 20
5. 38
2. 50
14. 00
3.60

16. 45
48.00
14. 40
35. 95
26. 00
135. 00
16. 12
219. 05
500. 00

204. 54
62.50
18. 31
41.54
145. 56

82. 65
28. 62

8. 00
263. 15
12. 50

229. 33
18. 30

79. 36
375. 00

1.00
4. 00
4. 36
45. 40
41.62
73.73
38. 00

110. 95
163. 55

120..41
210. 60
117. 90
151. 60
168. 50
117.90
9. 00
266. 66
180. 18
337. 00
80. 00

80. 00
65. 00

250. 00
50. 00
55. 00
252. 70
60. 00
589. 70
1, 182. 60
1, 277, 23
1, 307, 90
1. 103, 24

763. 96
370. 60

Total

13, 335. 81

160

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
Oct. 9
11

18
22
29
31

Engraver’s supplies .

$1.60
23. 59

_ _ do .

_ do .

11. 20

_ do .

12. 50

. . . .do .

5. 00

Freight charges .

1. 15

Services. October, 1890 .

843. 10

898. 14

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during October , 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Oct. 6
11
16
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21

Supplies . .

Traveling expenses .

_ do .

.... do .

Field expenses .

.... do .

_ do .

Traveling expenses . . .

Field expenses .

... .do .

Traveling expenses .

16
17

. . . .do .

_ do . . .

Traveling expenses .

20
21

_ do .

Field expenses .

. . . .do .

Traveling expenses .

A. F. Dudley .

. . . .do .

Field expenses .

. . . .do .

... .do .

_ do .

Field expenses .

A. L. Tittle .

Transportation .

C. T. Reid .

Services, September, 1890 .

Mrs. C. E. Smith .

... .do .

Nannie M. Peyton .

_ do .

... .do .

_ do .

Field & Jenkins .

Subsistence .

S. S. Fetterhoff .

Subsistence and Transportation _

S. -T. Ha'islett .

Field supplies .

Melville Lindsay .

_ .do .

AVycklioff, Seamans & Benedict.
John W. Price .

Kepairs .

Pasturage .

W. F. Fling .

Forage .

Storage .

.... do .

J. C. Baker .

Z. N. Lockhard .

. . . .do .

N. B. Dunn .

_ do .

L. C. Fletcher .

. . . .do .

... .do .

....do .

... .do .

. . . .do .

_ do .

Charles E. Cooke .

. . . .do .

R. Lee Longstreet .

_ do .

A. E.Ulurlin .

_ do .

M. Hackett .

_ do .

Louis Nell .

_ do .

E. C. Barnard .

....do .

$25. 60
64. 98
63.12

13.48
2. 35
7.48

88. 06

81.49
170. 29

22.41
81.05
230. 80

5. 89
3. 24

28. 55
180. 51
7. 50
24.47
202. 58
118. 19
12. 90
30. 30

89. 60
109. 66

12. 24
11.77
63.30
30.37

68.40
25. 00
25. 00
35. 00

162. 00
3. 11
85. 60

51.25
7. 25

25. 00
2. 70
32.00

13.50
18. 00

6. 00
6. 00

90. 00
150. 00
150. 00

49. 70
84. 53
70. 75

79.40
90. 04
82. 95
78. 57

372. 87
141. 02
290. 17

-M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

161

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

1890.

Oct. 21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
22
21
21
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
29
21
22
29
31
31
31

Voucher.

60
61
62

80
81
82

99
100
101
102

103

104

105

106

107

108

109

110
111
112

113

114

To whom paid.

John II. Renshawe. .

_ do .

R. O. Gordon .

L. M. Hoskins .

Van H. Manning, jr.

_ do .

H. B. Blair .

H. S. Wallace .

George T. Hawkins.

For what paid.

Traveling expenses .

- do .

Field expenses .

Traveling expenses .

Field expenses .

_ do . .

.do.

William J. Peters . ' - do .

...do .

- do .

G. E. Hyde .

D. C. Harrison .

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

R. M. Towson .

Tlieo. Attemder & Sons .

George S. Harris & Sons .

E. C. Barnard .

W. O. Beall .

Julius Ulke .

Benson, Roux & Co .

J. S. Topham .

William Odell .

Henry J. Green .

Robert D. Cummin, pay roll . .

C. G. Van Hook .

Louis Nell, pay roll .

Frank Sutton, pay roll .

A. E.Murlin, pay roll . do .

Charles E. Cook, pay roll . . do .

William Kramer, pay roll . . . do .

George T. Hawkins, pay roll _ ; _ do .

Lewis J. Battle . I Services October

John H. Renshawe . do

G. E. Hyde . do

...do .

...do . .

.. .do .

Instruments .

Maps .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do .

Services October....

Transportation .

Supplies . .

Field expenses .

Instruments .

October .

Services October

October .

. . -do .

Charles M. Yeates .

M. Hackett, pay roll .

R. M. Towson, pay roll .

E. C. Barnard, pay roll .

L. C. Fletcher, pay roll .

Glenn S. Smith, pay roll .

H. B. Blair, pay roll .

S. S. Gannett .

W. H. Lovell, pay roll .

Van H. Manning, jr., pay roll

D. C. Harrison, pay roll . .

R. Lee Longstreet .

Edward Kiibel .

- do .

John H. Klemrotli .

W. & L. E. Gurley .

Marcus Baker .

H. M. Wilson .

Anton Karl, pay roll .

William H. Griffin .

_ do .

Total

....do . .

October .

_ do .

_ do . .

_ do .

Services October...

October .

....do .

_ do . .

Services October
Services August
Services September
Services October

Instruments .

Traveling expenses .

_ do . .

October .

Traveling expenses
Field expenses .

Amount.

$63. 31
61.11

139. 10
21.80

128. 75
65. 25

225. 90
58.65

395. 13

38. 50
68. 00
19. 70

182. 85
113. 90
147. 24
176. 25
19. 20
687. 50
59. 67
22. 15
22. 58
180. 00
18. 75

85. 50
166. 00
266. 38

84. 20

475. 10
264. 50
348. 70

236. 10

286. 90
302. 90

60. 00
210. 60
75. 80
151. 60
398. 82

242. 90

407. 40
491. 60
155. 80
363. 99
168. 50

310. 40

161. 10
193. 70
101. 10
171. 20

5. 71
126. 09
420. 00
69.97
70. 32
3, 659. 60
19. 75
11.88

17, 557. 39

Abstract of disbursements made by C. L). Davis , special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during October, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
•Oct. 4
4
4
4

W. J. McGee .

Noah R. King .

Charles D. Loughry
John B. Bean .

Traveling expenses .

Services, July 21 to October 4, 1890.

. . .do .

Services, August 1, to September 30,

Edward C. Alderson
James Forristell
Frank Leverett .

1890.

. . .do .

Services, August5toOctober5, 1890.
Services, August and September,
1890.

12 GEOL - 11

$110. 90
152. 00
190. 00
150. 00

110. 00
155. 00
260. 00

162

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

1890.
Oct. 6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
13
13

14
14
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
17
17
17
17

18
18

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

A. C.Peale .

Field expenses .

$62. 05
33. 33

Services, September 1 to 20, 1890 . . .

96. 00

_ do .

97. 80

85. 62

....do .

61.10

16
17

_ do .

111.07

28. 40

R. S. Tarr .

77. 30

20
21
22

_ _ do .

49.73

_ do .

54. 36

..do .

123. 58

66. 92

153. 90

134. 65

10. 00

C. W. Hayes .

123. 76

150. 00

90. 00

252. 80

Services, September 1 to 18, 1890 . . .
Services, August and September,
1890. ^

54. 00

160. 00

114. 75

36. 25

George E. Luther .

_ _ do .

30. 85

...do .

18. 00

40. 08

Services, September 1 to 25, 1690 . . .

63. 33

10. 60

43. 75

T. Nelson Dale .

147. 93

38. 10

100. oo

W. S. Bay lev . .

_ _ do .

125. 00

Benjamin G. Palmer .

_ _ do .

25. 00

George W. Metcalfe .

. do .

19. 33

31. 54

J. E. Wolff .

4. 89

. . . .do .

Services, September, 1890 .

95. 11

Main & Winchester .

13. 59

Services, September 1 to 13, 1890 . . .

9. 50

T. Nelson Dale .

9. 03

1«6. 32

W. S. Bavley .

_ _ do .

147. 43

E. R. Hathaway .

11. 73

T. Nelson Dale .

_ _ do .

53. 69

J.E. Wolff .

71.36

Raphael Pumpelly .

326. 00

Bailey Willis .

167. 30

15. 94

... .do .

148. 79

S. H. Davis .

99. 47

_ do .

Services, July 8 to September 30,
1890. _

55. 48

M. A. Read .

25. 30

H. W. Turner .

Field expenses .

56. 85

W. H. Dali .

64. 45

. . . .do .

.... do .

67. 20

_ do .

_ _ do .

146. 05

C. R. Van Hise .

_ do .

437. 33

R. D. Salisbury .

394. 32

Hetli. Canfield .

9. 58

J. S. Diller .

463. 28

86. 40

C. R. Van Hise .

Services, October, 1890 .

337. 00

George E. Luther .

_ do .

101. 10

AV. J. McGee .

_ _ do .

252. 70

A. B. Dawson .

_ do .

36. 68

A. C. Peale .

_ _ do .

168. 50

Edmund Jussen .

Services, September 20 to October
31, 1890.

68. 33

1, 221. 50
1, 589. 10
151. 60

_ .do .

T. Nelson Dale .

_ do .

Lawrence C. Johnson .

_ do .

117. 90

MrCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

163

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

Eor what paid.

1890.
Oct.

Mark B. Kerr .

W. Lindgren .

H. W. Turner .

G. F. Becker .

George H. Eklridge .
Gilbert Van Ingen. .
Benjamin G. Palmer

A. P. Baker .

Raphael Pumpelly . .

J. M. Safford .

Edward Storrs .

Services, October, 1890 .

...do .

. . .do .

Traveling expenses .

Services, October, 1890 .

. . -do .

Rent of office room .

Services, October, 1890 .

Services, September 2 to 4, 1890 _

Services, September 1 to October 2,

1890.

Warren Upliam .

Benjamin K. Emerson

C. W. Hayes .

M. R. Campbell .

Traveling expenses . . .
Services, October, 1890

...do .

Amount.

$151. 60
134. 80
134. 80
337. 00
130. 40
75. 00
25.00
43.75
337. 00
14. 67
47.90

20. 50
100. 53
101. 10
75. 00

Total

13, 831. 38

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geolog¬
ical Survey, during October, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Oct. 16
16
16
16
16

28
31
31
31

8
9

Pay roll of employes .

....do .

_ clo .

_ do .

W. Preston Redmond
John S. Mendenhall. .

Louis V. Pirsson .

Arnold Hague .

Pay roll of employes .
_ do . . .

Services, August, 1890 . . .
Services, September, 1890
Services, August, 1890 . . .
Services, September, 1890

Traveling expenses .

Subsistence stores .

Traveling expenses .

Salary, August, 1890 .

Salaries, September, 1890
Salaries, October, 1890 . . .

$378. 50
373. 00
185. 00
185. 00
28.15
212. 09
28. 00
337. 00
399. 40
732. 90

Total

2, 859. 04

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. Rizer, disbursing agent, U. S. Geological Survey,
during the second quarter of 1891, October 1 to November 19, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

R. A. Kirk .

Allen Moon & Co .

Mart Buford & Burwell Co
Great Northern Railway. . .

E. M. Douglas .

R. U. Parry .

Robert A. Farmer .

William S. Post .

B. F. Buckner, jr .

L. H. Cooper .

C. T. Reid .

T.M. Call .

H. H. Chumlea .

_ do .

Gross & Eylers .

Stuart P. Johnson .

E. M. Douglas .

Burkhard & Oswald .

i Morris Bien .

_ do .

Field material .

Subsistence .

Material .

Freight .

Field expenses .

Feed and storage. . .

Field expenses .

— do .

Traveling expenses

_ do .

...do .

_ do .

Services .

Supplies .

Field expenses .

— do .

Traveling expenses

Material .

Field expenses .

... do .

H. F. Salyards _

A. Lietz & Co _

Redick H. McKee .
R. H. Chapman . . .

Material .

Repairs .

Field expenses
_ do .

$11.87
93. 13
620. 55
111.52
57. 85
33.85
21.30
29. 64
41.25
41.25

25. 75
9.50

44. 75
15. 00
22. 53
46. 52
57. 56
31. 25
25. 85
67. 48
90. 00
100. 00

22. 75
84. 18
60.63

ip:

ier,

.01

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

•act of disbursements made by H. C. Rizer, etc. — Continued.

ROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

To wliom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

A. F. Dunnington .

John Lee .

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

R. H. Chapman .

lone Coal and Iron Company . . .

W. and L. E. Gurley .

Redick H. McKee .

E. M. Douglass .

H. L. Bald win,, jr .

O. L. Houghton .

John McConn . . .

_ do .

C. D. Chinn .

_ do .

Charles Himrod .

AcuffBros .

A. Van Deusen .

Oppenlander & Relim .

B. F. Acuff & Co .

W. E. Hickman .

C. S. Woodrow .

Gross & Eylers .

Reeves & Co .

Pace & Crozur .

W. B. Kimmel .

William J. Peters .

_ do . . .

John Odell .

W. B. Corse .

Morris Bien .

_ do .

A. E. Wilson .

William S. Post .

William P. Trowbridge, jr .

Stuart P. Johnson, jr .

Samuel A. Foot .

. . . -do .

- do .

L. B. Kendall .

A. P. Davis .

Robert A . Farmer .

- do .

John W. Hays .

F. H. Newell .

C. C. Bassett .

Alexander C. Barclay .

William H. Herron .

S. C. Gallup .

W illard D. Johnson . . .

Paul Holman .

Frank Williams .

Fred. A. Schmidt .

William Malboeuf .

G. V. Bartlett .

W. B. Corse . .

C. L. Garland .

T. M. Brannon .

- do .

William H. Herron .

Wm. S. Post .

Frank Tweedy .

Perry Fill ter .

J. F.'Farmer .

L. Creps . - .

Morris Bien .

Allan Tompkins .

M. J. Kieley .

E. M. Douglas .

F. M. Call .

F. H. Newell .

Spratlem & Anderson .

Bach Cory & Co .

Ed. B. Thomas .

Samuel A. Foot .

Redick H. McKee .

L. B. Kendall .

F. H. Stewart .

Robert A . Farmer .

H. S. Wallace .

Field expenses .

Supplies .

Field expenses .

_ do .

Pasturage .

Material .

Field expenses .

_ do .

— do .

Material .

Services .

Traveling expenses .

Forage .

Supplies .

Subsistence .

Supplies .

_ do .

Subsistence .

_ do .

Supplies .

_ do .

Subsistence .

Services .

Field expenses .

Traveling expenses .

_ do . .

_ do .

- do, .

Field expenses .

- do .

_ do .

...do .

_ do .

. . .do . .

Material .

Traveling expenses .

— do .

Services .

Supplies .

Material .

. . .do .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do .

. . do .

Field expenses .

— do .

...do .

. . .do .

Forage .

Supplies .

Field expenses .

Board .

Pasturage .

Field expenses .

Services .

Field expenses .

Subsistence .

Supplies .

Material .

Field expenses .

.. .do .

Labor .

Field expenses .

...do .

$22. 25

36. 06
117. 50

27.65

26. 30
2. 10

16. 25

59. 84
260. 83

23. 40

13.33
17. 95
15. 90
30. 00
61.62

35. 79
11.38
16.00

294. 79
2. 80

14.15

23.33

44.25

97. 20
45.00
34. 50
13. 50

6. 75
47. 50

69. 63
79.49

30. 30
29. 24
81. 91
73. 52

27. 95
9. 35

37. 50
135. 80

84. 11
52. 06
73. 20
26. 68
102. 00
51.01
56. 59
91.10
120. 35

32. 95

19. 75
23.22

23.40

59. 30
125. 00

28. 75
6. 85
42. 25
112. 50

20. 20

70. 91
41.88

64.15
33. 60

7.15

110.18

148.45

14. 15

71.20
8.00

97.79
19.04

93. 40
60. 00

158. 05

83.41
164. 25

61.28

49. 85
51.40

MrCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

165

Abstracts of disbursements made by H. C. Rizer, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL STTRVEY-Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.

Oet. 27

Foraging stock .

& 16 80

106

18 85

107

A. Dee ter .

11 90

108

8 35

109

William H. Herron .

Field expenses .

75 35

110

Services .

21U20

111

C. T. Reid .

70 80

112

E. T. Perkins, jr .

_ _ do .

134 80

113

108 50

114

C. H. Fitch .

151 00

115

...do .

252^ 70

116

E. M. Douglas .

_ do .

108 50

117

H. C. Rizer .

_ do .

185 30

118

Pay roll .

317 90

119

- do .

315. 10

120

- do .

...do .

217. 95

121

. . . .do .

_ do .

335. 00

192

_ do .

030 30

123

...do .

230 80

124

_ do .

533. 15

125

_ _ do .

220 80

126

. . . .do .

_ _ do .

125 80

127

_ _ do .

_ do .

316. 29

128

_ do .

... .do .

375 40

129

.... do .

. . .do .

280 90

130

...do .

113 53

131

....do .

_ _ do .

125. 80

132

. . . .do .

_ do .

143. 40

133

P. U. Goode .

92 44

134

. . . .do .

Services .

210. 60

135

117 90

136

_ _ do .

145. 80

137

225 80

138

_ do .

170 80

139

_ do .

303. 50

140

A. F. Dunnington .

Traveling expenses .

102. 00

141

. . . .do .

151. 60

142

Pay roll .

_ _ do .

316. 60

143

... .do .

_ _ do .

358. 05

144

_ _ do .

_ do .

231. 10

145

_ do .

_ _ do .

80 96

146

_ do _ .' .

285 00

147

.... do .

_ do .

582. 04

148

_ do .

259. 20

149

_ do .

301. 60

150

_ do .

225. 80

151

_ do .

225. 80

Nov. 3

152

A. E. Dunnington .

Traveling expenses .

18. 25

153

Kobert A. Farmer .

Field expenses .

61. 20

154

... .do .

40. 07

155

Supplies .

6. 60

156

_ _ do .

2. 00

157

... .do .

1.41

158

17. 25

159

_ _ do .

80. 82

160

W. T. Griswold .

.... do .

53. 35

161

Samuel McDowell .

Supplies .

300. 00

162

P. V. S. Bartlett .

Field expenses .

130. 80

163

C. C. Bassett .

113. 64

164

_ do .

129. 30

165

323. 70

166

H.*M. Myers .

Supplies .

71. 64

167

Field expenses .

130. 11

168

_ _ do .

18. 94

169

F. H. Newell .

_ do .

91. 00

170

AY. B. Corse .

... .do .

26. 45

171

J. D. Reagan .

Traveling expenses .

16. 75

172

K. ( McKinney .

Field expenses .

238. 38

173

_ do .

. . . .do .

8.40

174

Henry Williams .

62. 86

175

55. 36

176

Andrew McClelland .

6. 35

177

Material .

9.95

178

8. 00

179

A. McClelland ..

39. 40

180

Board .

19. 37

181

24. 00

182

163. 09

183

E. T. Perkins, jr .

...do .

275. 54

166

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by II. C. ffizer, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

1890.
Nov. 4
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5

6
6
6
6

8
8
8
8
8

14
14
14
14
14
18
18
18
18
18
18
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

184

185

186

187

188

.do . .

. . . .do .

189

190

191

192

R R Kelly .

193

194

_ do .

195

196

... .do .

197

198

_ _ do . ;

199

C W. Kitchen .

200

201

202

. ..do .

203

204

205

206

_ do .

207

208

209

. . . .do .

210

....do .

211

212

213

214

Services .

215

216

217

218

E.M. Douglas”..' .

219

220

William J. Peters .

_ do .

221

.... do .

222

223

A. McClelland .

224

225

226

227

J . A . Rogers .

Supplies .

228

229

P. V. S. Bartlett .

_ _ do .

230

H. E. Clermont Eeusier .

_ do .

231

_ do .

232

W. H. Sanders .

233

J. M. Dikeman .

234

R. B. Cameron .

235

A. E. Wilson .

_ _ do .

236

E. McL. Long .

_ _ do .

237

H. C. Rizer .

_ _ do .

238

J. B. Lippincott .

_ _ do .

239

_ do .

240

_ do .

... .do .

241

J. C. King .

242

A. Deeter .

Board .

243

William II. Herron .

Field expenses .

244

H. S. Wallace .

_ do .

245

. . . .do .

246

R. O. Gordon . _ .

247

R. U. Goode .

. . . .do .

248

Paul Holman .

Total .

Amount.

$31. 94
68.37
62. 31
159. 01
53. 05
147. 80

36. 40
47. 75
12. 00

7. 18
49.00

24.64
254. 41
155. 36
137. 47

38.00
25. 00

73. 10

78. 50
15. 05
30. 28

31.45

25. 30

54.50
47. 12
30.60

46. 10

32.40
66. 71
29.04
75.00
52. 47

7. 50
25. 30
93. 67

36. 75

12. 30
47. 50
12.00
84.00

50. 75
162. 60

41. 25
28.52

9. 70

85.65
53.47

37.50

10.25
60.00
61. 55
61.55
27.95

41.40
51.00
26. 20

81.46
21.85

53. 65
92.15
42.54

23.25
60. 55
31. 56
14. 65

22, 457. 90

rac,

5 I

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

167

>• sements made by Jno. D. McChesney, Chief Disbursing Clerk, V. S.
Geological Survey, during November, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

To whom paid. | For what paid.

Z. D. Gilman .

Washington Gaslight Co
William A. Wansleben. . .

_ do .

J S. Smith .

W. Bauman

F. H. Newell .

DeLancey W. Gill .

E. & H. T. Anthony & Co .

The Springer Torsion Balance
Company.

Whitall, Tatum &, Co

George E. Bailey .

Henry Bufford . .

William P. Rust .

Julius Bien & Co ....

Atlantic & Pacific R. R. Co .

John F. Stephenson .

Columbia Phonograph Co .

E. Morrison .

C. A. White .

Adams Express Co .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co .

Burlington and Mo. River R. R.
in Nebraska.

Chicago, Milwaukee and St.
Paul R. R.

Chicago, Burlington and North¬
ern R. R.

Cutter & Wood .

H. B. Walker .

Baltimore and Ohio R. It. Co .

Daniel Spriggs .

Smithsonian Institution .

Wyckoff, Seamans & Benedict. . .
Atchison, Topeka & Santa F6
R.R.

Prescott and Arizona Central
R. R.

S. H. Davis .

Eimer & Amend .

S. Ward Loper .

Supplies .

Laboratory supplies .

Services, November 1 to 4, 1890. . . .
Services, November 5 to 9, 1890. . . .

Services, November 7, 1890 .

do .

Services, October 1 to 3, 1890 .

Traveling expenses .

Supplies for ill ustrations .

Laboratory supplies .

do .

Paleontologie supplies .

Services, November 3 to 8, 1890. . . .

Services, October, 1890 .

Publications .

Transportation of assistant .

Freight charges .

Phonographic services .

Library supplies .

Traveling expenses .

Freight charges, October, 1890 .

Transportation of assistants .

_ do . :

I - do .

- do .

Geologic supplies .

Publications .

Transportation of assistants .

do .

Traveling expenses .

Transportation of exchanges .

Repairing geologic material .

Transportation of assistants .

_ do .

Pasturage .

Laboratory supplies .

Services, October 1 to November 13,
1890.

. . . .do

John S. Lengs, Son & Co .

T.W. Stanton .

Chicago, Burlington and Quincy
R. R.

Emil Greiner .

Fred. A. Schmidt .

_ do .

Ira Sayles .

Sam It. Scudder .

William M. Fontaine .

J. Henry Blake .

H. A. Otterback .

Baltimore and Ohio R. R. Co _

L. H. Schneider’s Son .

James Storrs .

Marcus Baker .

O. C. Marsh .

Gus Craven .

W. H. Utterbaek .

0. A. Peterson .

J. B. Hatcher . .

F. Berger .

L.P. Bush .

H. Gibb .

C. C. Willard .

L. J. Yeager .

Pay roll of employes .

_ do .

- do .

_ do .

_ do . .

United States Express Co .

Laboratory supplies .

Traveling expenses .

Transportation of assistants .

Laboratory supplies .

Supplies .

_ do .

Services, November. 1890 .

_ do .

...do .

— do .

Supplies for Mineral Resources ....

Transportation of assistants .

Supplies .

Services, November 1 to 24, 1890

Services, November, 1890 .

_ do .

Services J uly 1 to November 15,1890 .

Services November, 1890 .

...do .

_ do . . .

_ do .

— do .

Rent of office rooms .

Publications .

Services, November, 1890 .

_ do .

— do .

_ do .

— do .

_ do .

Freight charges, October, 1890 .

Amount.

$179. 14
39. 38
16.81
26. 79
1.72
1. 72
16. 30
14. 20
133. 00
35. 00

14. 87
85. 00
12.00
108. 00
20. 00
25. 70
4. 39
49. 82
7. 50
124. 86
148. 90
27. 00
45. 90

11.50

26. 30

27. 50
20. 00
249. 95
276. 30

3.50
1, 033. 10

2. 50
51.00

7.40

29. 16
6. 00
179. 16

2. 18
160. 98
26. 65

4.05
50. 35
13. 30
114.20
203. 80
163. 00

146. 80
3. 50

95.20
13. 84
44.00
244. 60
326. 00
675. 00
55. 00
65. 00
250. 00
80. 00
50. 00
80. 00
266. 66
24. 00
570. 60
1, 275. 12
1, 163. 93
1,251.40
1, 116. 33
847. 80

358. 80
108. 85

12, 911. 81

Total

168

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. T). McCliesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

Date.

1890.

Nov. 5
18
18
18
19
24
24
29
29
29
29

Voucher.

8
9

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

Z. D. Gilman .

Ernest Kiibel .

Adams Express Co .

Fred A. Schmidt _

J. T. Walker & Sons

Engravers’ supplies .

Copper plates .

Freight charges, October, 1890

Engravers’ supplies .

_ do .

$13. 10
98. 88
1.10
200. 00
1.50

Martin Wiegand .

Francis Miller .

Jno. I). McCliesney - -
L. H. Schneider’s Son
Milton, Bradley & Co
Pay roll of employes .

...do .

. . .do .

Traveling expenses .

Engravers’ supplies .

. . .do .

Services, November, 1890

18. 75
2. 25
9.50
1.60
11. 16
818. 80

Total

1, 176. 64

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during November, 1S90.

APPROPRIATION FOR UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Nov. 10
10

. . . .do .

L. C. Fletcher .

_ _ do .

....do .

G. C. Van Hook°!

C. G. Van fiook . ", .

Field expenses .

Charles M. Yeates .

. . . .do .

L. C. Fletcher .

.... do .

. . . .do .

.... do .

_ _ do .

Charles E. Cooke .

E. C. Barnard .

_ _ do .

. . . .do .

_ _ do .

..do .

_ _ do .

. . . .do . : .

G. E. Hyde .

..do .

W. & L. E. Gurley .

W. W. Maxwell .

Van H. Manning, jr .

... .do . . .

_ _ do .

H. B. Blair .

. . .do .

I). C. Harrison .

B. Pevton LegaiA .

Traveling expenses .

John'S. Renshawe .

L. C. Eletclier .

IV. B. Moses & Sons .

W. E. Horton .

W. R. Atkinson .

. . . .do .

Robert I). Cummin .

_ _ do .

. . . .do .

J. J. Mason .

_ do .

Albert M. Walker .

_ do .

M. B. Lambert .

_ _ do .

_ do .

William Kramer .

_ do .

Ewing Speed .

. . . .do .

A. F. Dudley .

W. H. Lovell .

_ do .

Frank Sutton .

....do .

$54 91
54 35
106. 85
78. 35
51.35
31. 30
75. 05
50. 70
23. 80
27. 65

72. 10

170. 08

113. 45
167. 77

35. 01
240. 17

117.10
136. 86

171. 70
171.90

83. 45
149. 50
116. 66

78. 02
60.95

14.10
13. 00
25. 00
83. 66

157. 83

204. 10
120. 22

35. 63
40. 50

69.45
38. 00
10. 68
34. 98

133. 00
171. 20
15. 06
13.16
94. 75
73. 55
4. 75
9. 88
114. 47
87. 72
25. 00
8. 20
46. 05
93.00
91.00
204. 36

MWHESXEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

169

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
Nov. 20

Lincoln Martin .

Field expenses .

$85. 62
160. 90

Glenn S. Smith .

_ _ do .

W. M. Beaman .

... .do .

125. 75
71.50
37. 50
50. 00
20. 00
109. 25
4. 55
51.02
1.50
46 68

L. C. Fletcher .

_ _ do .

Thomas C. Nelson .

Services, October .

S. J. Ha islet t .

Supplies .

H. M. "Wilson .

. . . .do . . .

G. E. Hyde .

Traveling expenses .

H. W. Carpenter .

... .do .

26. 75
211. 57
50. 00

Joseph W. Jones .

Services, September . . .

Nannie M. Payton .

Services, October .

25. 00
25. 00
24. 80
53 75

Mrs. C. E. Smith .

L. C. Fletcher .

Field expenses .

73.25
8 50

Traveling expenses .

37. 25

307. 75

580. 89
81.60
163. 00

. . . .do .

18. 39

40.31
66. 50
81 60

C. G. Van Hook\ .

431. 79

Anton Karl, pay roll .

... .do .

3,249 28

Gilbert Thompson, pay roll .

_ do .

1, 009. 60

235. 00

400. 20

Charles M. Yeates .

_ _ do .

146. 80

Thomas C. Nelson .

... .do .

50. 00

_ _ do .

424. 06

427. 20
327. 00

W. H. Lovell-, payroll .

_ _ do .

John H. Rensliawe .

_ do .

203. 80

William Kramer .

97. 80

F. H. Clark .

9. 00

W. W. Maxwell .

_ _ do .

15. 00

J. H . Hagerty .

.... do .

25. 50

100

R. M. Towson .

114. 20

101

91. 66

102

20. 80
23. 95

103

_ _ do .

104

... .do .

Field expenses .

41. 60

105

Louis Nell .

Traveling expenses . .

39. 25

106

A. B. Searle .

. . . .do .

28. 00

107

G. Unsell .

13. 33

108

44. 83

109

43. 70

110

W. T. Ouillin .

_ _ do .

43. 80

111

George Unsell .

10. 85

112

Robert D. Cummin, pay roll _

338. 20

113

107. 43

114

... .do .

17.43

115

6. 33

116

... .do .

56. 05

117

_ _ do .

50.' 00

118

4. 14

119

James Goode .

. . . .do .

11.60

120

William D. Clark & Co .

Material for mounting maps .

39. 92

Total .

15, 310. 61

170

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during November, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

To ■whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.

$236. 32
198. 90

Services, September 1 to October 31,
1890.

Services, October, 1890 .

125. 00

_ _ do .

50. 00

_ do .

270. 00

... .do .

26. 70

_ do .

55. 00

. . . .do .

30. 00

W J McGee

155. 49

Traveling expenses, August 1 to
September 30, 1890.

Traveling expenses, October, 1890 ..
_ do..... .

130. 00

252. 70

80.00

_ _ do .

101. 10

135. 00

C. L. Whittle . .• .

Traveling expenses, September,
1890.

Traveling expenses, October, 1890 . .

100. 00

R. S. Tarr

33. 68

_ do .

375. 32

C. R. Eastman .

_ _ do . .

23. 95

_ _ do .

29. 20

G. K. Gilbert .

_ do .

96. 06

_ _ do .

146. 45

H. W. Turner .

.....do .

99. 31

53.07

F. C. Boyce .

Services, October, 1890 .

60.00

R. S. Tarr .

. . . .do .

16. 00

40. 00

"VV. T. Turner ..T .

50. 00

9. 00

22. 52

27. 27

S. H. Davis .

_ _ do .

14. 00

A . C. Peale . .

59. 20

125. 50

R. H. Gaines .

_ _ do .

8.25

J. H. Ropes .

. . . .do .

72. 49

.... do .

61. 72

J. E. Wolff .

45. 65
2. 65

. . . .do .

Field expenses .

C. "W. Hayes .

_ do. . .t .

27. 93

_ do .

144. 92
81.64
19. 75

_ do .

F. Hollister .

_ do .

26. 17
88. 94

M. R. Campbell .

_ do .

T. Nelson Hale .

Field expenses .

8. 95

W. 11. Snyder .

Services. August 1 to 15, 1890 .

24. 19

33. 29

George H. Eldridge .

134. 76

Raphael Pam nelly .

120.44

_ do .

16. 52

"VV. Lindgren .

Services, November, 1890 .

130. 40

_ _ do .

114. 20

H. W. Turner .

130. 40

A. Lutz & Co .

Repairs to instruments .

12.50

"W. Lindgren .

Field expenses .

119. 25

Moritz Fischer .

Traveling expenses .

28. 98

R. E. Dodge .

....do .

18.44

I. C. Russell .

133. 50

S. Ward Loper .

Serviced, September 1 to 19, 1890 ....
Services, November, 1890 .

22.50

George E. Luther .

97. 80

C. R/Van Hise .

_ _ do .

326. 00

Raphael Pumpelly .

_ do .

326. 00

W. B. Clark .

_ _ do .

125. 00

Benjamin G. Palmer .

25. 00

T. Nelson Dale .

_ _ do .

146. 80

J. B. Woodworth .

.... do .

50.00

R. E. Dodge .

30. 00

P. M. Jones .

6.40

N. S. Slialer .

250. 00

Fred. E. Morris .

Services, November 1 to 22, 1890 ....

53.80

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

171

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION POR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
Nov. 30
30
30

Pay roll of employes .

Services, November, 1890 .

_ do .

$1, 752. 60
443.00
1, 792. 10

10, 554. 17

_ do .

_ _ do .

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during November, 1890.

APPROPRIATION EOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.

Nov. 5
7
10
10
17
20
28
30

Louis V. Pirsson. . . .
Joseph P. Iddings . .

Louis V. Pirsson -

Pay roll of employes
J. C. McCartney . . . . .

W. H. Weed .

Arnold Hague .

Pay roll of employes

Services, October, 1890 . . .

Field expenses .

Traveling expenses .

Services, October, 1890 . .

Hauling and storage _

Field expenses .

. . .do .

Services, November, 1890

$25. 00
25. 95
29. 30
149. 98
11.80
65. 85
64.16
717 40

Total

1, 089. 44

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. Rizer, disbursing agent, U. S. Geological Surrey,

during the second quarter of 1891.

TOPOGRAPHY WEST OF ONE HUNDREDTH MERIDIAN.

1890.
Nov. 19
20

249

250

F. H. Newell .

251

_ do .

252

A. E. Wilson. .

_ do .

253

Frank F. Smart .

Traveling expenses .

254

S. I). P. Baxter .

Board .

255

256

William S. Post .

257

William M. Heidenricli .

Services .

258

K. B. Stoneroad .

Foraging stock .

259

W. A. Parish .

260

John Ott .

... .do .

261

R. O. Gordon .

262

R. H. Chapman .

_ do .

263

Samuel A. Foot .

... .do .

264

K. V. Osborne Bartlett .

Services .

265

Charles B. Green .

266

J. L. King .

267

Pay roll .

Services .

268

R. H. Chapman .

Dec. 1

269

A. F. Dunnington .

270

L. B. Kendall .

_ _ do .

271

_ _ do .

....do .

272

Mark B. Kerr .

273

T. M. Bannon .

_ _ do .

274

Pay roll .

_ do .

275

_ do .

_ _ do .

276

_ _ do .

_ do .

277

_ do .

... .do .

278

_ do .

279

_ do .

280

_ do .

281

_ do .

282

_ do .

. do .

283

_ do .

284

_ do .

285

_ do .

_ _ do .

286

_ do .

287

_ do .

_ _ do .

288

_ do .

289

_ do .

290

... .do .

_ do .

291

- do .

$22. 77
80.00
172. 50

57. 75

18. 75
5. 50
3.00

61.36
23.33
28. 83
75. 00
8.33
404. 66

47. 15
181.90

16. 00
68. 55
.70
183. 16
58.00
18.00
6. 00

41.80

146. 80
75.00

799. 20
106. 93
212. 00
329. 35
38.66
597. 54
194. 07
176. 60
271. 60
143. 40
196. 80
129. 67
231. 60
297. 60

303. 80

44. 16
289. 80

252. 80

172

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Date.

1890.

Dec. 3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3

3
5
5
5

4
4
4

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. Rizer, etc. — Continued.
TOPOGRAPHY "WEST OF ONE HUNDREDTH MERIDIAN— Continued.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

292

993

Services .

'do .

_ do .

294

295

296

H S Pritchett .

_ do .

_ _ do .

....do .

297

_ do .

298

299

. . . .do .

300

301

_ do .

302

. . . .do .

303

do .

304

305

B. F. A cuff & Co .

306

. . . .do .

307

W. P. Merrill .

308

309

Denver Transit and Warehouse

310

Co.

311

312

313

314

J. M. Bav .

315

316

317

318

319

W. J. Mill rap .

...do .

320

321

Frank E. Gove .

... .do .

322

Frank Tweedy .

323

Robert A. Farmer .

324

325

326

327

328

William P. Trowbridge, jr .

.... do .

329

E. M. Douglas .

330

A. P. Davis .

331

F. H. Newell .

332

333

S. S. Gannett .

_ _ do .

334

Frank Tweedy . .

335

.... do .

336

337

338

C. H. Fitch....''. .

339

Pay roll .

340

. . . .do .

341

... .do .

342

_ do .

343

_ do .

_ _ do .

344

A. F. Mack .

... do .

345

W. C. Pierce .

346

Charles F. TJrquhart .

... .do .

347

A. C. Swift .

348

G. W. Bond & Bro .

349

Samuel A. Foot .

350

IV. A. Farisli .

_ _ do .

351

Robert A. Farmer .

Paul Holman .

.do .

353

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

_ do .

354

Perry Fuller .

355

Samuel A. Foot .

_ _ do .

356

R. H. Chapman .

357

Arthur P. Davis .

..do .

358

R. R. Kelly .

359

C. W. Kittredge .

Supplies .

360

F. M. Call .. .

361

Pay roll .

.... do .

362

Nelson Morgan .

363

M. J. Davis 7 .

364

J. W. Martin .

365

Henry Darling .

...do .

366

A. Dee.ter . . .

367

Cook & Dawson .

368

N. B. Stoneroad .

Board of stock .

Amount.

$226. 60
894. 80
200. 00
40.00
163. 00
6.44

53.50
126. 25
126. 81

40. 71
53.83

22. 70

25. 25
18.04
35. 50
16.15
42. 50
21.29

20. 00
28.00

14. 40
28.80
42. 00

11.25
20. 00

28.70
15. 00
10. 00
35. 05
94. 00
37.47
94. 65
25. 90
25. 00

45.95
96. 77

273. 63
74. 11
129. 23
89. 00

61.70
175. 30
103. 97
148. 45
118.11

47. 95
146. 80

131. 60
419. 00
778. 40
240. 33
336. 30

50. 00
35. 38
62. 10
11.25
35. 13
20. 00

34. 40
119. 70

37.35
364. 01
34. 80
191. 16
109. 76
100. 21
33.00

132. 03
60. 00

313. 73

23. 33
22. 50
36.00

23. 50
49. 60
58.00
33. 00

MrCHESNEY.

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

173

Abstract of disbursements made by U. C. Rizer, etc. — Continued.

TOPOGRAPHY WEST OF ONE HUNDREDTH MERIDIAN— Continued.

Date.

Toucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
Dec. 11

369

Livery . . .

$13. 50
6. 00

370

Hire of horse .

371

Storage .

372

43. 29
60. 06

373

_ do .

374

.... do .

9. 85

375

_ _ do .

53. 40

376

. . . .do .

377

Supplies .

29. 97

378

J. W. Miller .

_ _ do .

21. 21

379

126. 15

380

Spratten & Anderson .

Subsistence .

51.40

381

Handy & McGee .

_ do .

5. 10

382

B. F. Acuff & Co .

. . . .do .

39. 65

383

239. 40

384

Joseph Jacobs .

_ _ do .

43. 12

385

P. V.*S. Bartlett .

.... do .

19. 50

386

R. C. McKinney .

_ _ do .

262. 87

387

R. B. Marshall .

.... do .

106. 27

388

E. M. Douglass .

...do .

161. 79

389

Samuel A. Foote .

... .do .

49. 35

390

R. H. Chapman .

.... do .

7. 50

391

_ do .

39. 88

392

_ do .

20. 32

393

Stuart P. Johnson .

_ do .

116. 66

394

J ohn W. Hays .

... .do .

88.72

395

Board .

14.00

396

18. 00

397

71. 55

398

44. 00

399

Morris Bien .

_ do .

11. 70

400

.... do .

Field expenses .

47. 11

401

... .do _

. . . .do .

44.84

402

81. 60

403

Pay roll .

_ do .

531. 25

404

_ do .

16. 66

405

.... do .

24. 15

406

C. T. Reid .

Traveling expenses .

37. 25

407

A. L. Bruce .

...do .

12.50

408

P. V. S. Bartlett .

_ _ do .

124. 00
26. 90

409

John Bowler .

_ _ do .

410

.... do .

411

William J. Peters .

_ do .

25. 00

412

Morris Bien .

_ _ do .

25. 00

413

W. B. Corse .

_ do .

25. 00

414

F. M. Smith .

.... do .

33.00

415

W. T. Griswold .

_ _ do .

65. 25

416

41.41

417

W.B. Corse .

. . . .do .

32. 40

418

. . . .do .

_ do .

71. 82

419

E. T. Perkins, jr .

_ _ do .

67. 95

420

... .do . r .

_ do .

182. 10

421

W. T. Griswold .

_ do .

56. 93

422

....do .

_ do .

51. 40

423

F.M. Smith .

...do .

104. 65

424

Pay roll .

142. 80

425

L. H. Cooper .

_ do .

11.28

426

... .do .

44. 00

427

21.45

428

! William J. Peters .

Field expenses .

94.26

429

.... do .

26. 40

430

W. T. Griswold .

_ _ do .

54.70

431

157. 63

Total .

18, 735. 55

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

• seinents made by Jno. D. McChesney, chief disbursing clerk, l
logical Survey, during December, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Charles L. Keyes !
Alpheus Hyatt . . .

Original drawings .

Services, September 1 to October 31,
1890.

Chesapeake and Ohio Ry. Co -

William P. Rust .

Denver and Rio Grande Rv. Co. .
Cleonora Manufacturing Co ....

Penrhyn Slate Co . i

R. A. Dinsmore . ■

George E. Littlefield .

George Ryneal, jr . - . I

Washington Gaslight Co .

Brentanos . j

. . .do .

Northern Pacific R. R. Co .

Castle & Henshawe .

W. H. Morrison .

E. H. King . .

William Wesley & Son .

Geological Society .

Wash. B. Williams .

L. H. Schneider’s Son .

Citizens’ National Bank .

Emil Greiner . . . .

Eimer & Amend .

Edward J . Hannan .

Missouri Pacific Ry. Co . J . . .

Whitall, Tatum & Co .

Goodnow & W iglitman .

William Earl Hidden .

Great Northern Ry. Co .

Williams, Browne & Earle .

Chicago, Milwaukee and St.

Paul Ry.

Victoria Essex .

Z. D. Gilman .

Great Northern Ry. Co .

Memphis and Charleston Ry. Co.
Wyckoff, Seamans & Benedict . .

Charles D. Walcott .

E. E. Jackson & Co .

E. & H. T. Anthony & Co .

J. B. Hammond .

William Ballautyne 6l Son .

H. Hoffa .

Edward J. Hannan .

Springmann & Brother .

Mary C. Mahon .

Edward J. Hannan .

C. S. Prosser .

Williams, Browne & Earle .

William M. Fontaine .

Ira Savles .

Sam. H. Scudder .

J. Henry Blake .

Harriet Biddle .

O. C. Marsh . . .

R. W. Westbrook .

W. A. Washburne .

T. A. Bostwick .

A. Hermann .

L. P. Bush .

H. Gibb .

F. Berger .

O. A. Peterson .

Pay roll of employ6s .

_ do . .' .

_ do .

- do .

_ do .

David T. Day .

William A. Raborg .

Frank T. Smart .

Transportation of assistants .

Services, November 1 to 30, 1890 -

Transportation of assistants .

Laboratory supplies .

Services .

Publications .

. . .do .

Supplies .

Laboratory supplies .

Publications .

_ do .

Transportation of assistants .

Geologic supplies .

Publications .

Geologic supplies .

_ do .

Publications .

Supplies .

_ do .

Bills of exchange .

Laboratory supplies .

- do .

Repairs, etc .

Transportation of assistants .

Laboratory supplies .

- do .

Transportation of assistants .

Repairs .

Transportation of assistants .

Services, December 2 to 23, 1890 .

Supplies .

Transportation of assistants .

- do .

Repairs .

Traveling expenses .

Laboratory supplies .

Supplies for illustrations .

_ do .

Supplies . .

Paleontologic supplies .

Laboratory supplies .

Hauling .

Services, December 6-23, 1890 .

Repairs to laboratory sink .

Services, November, 1890 .

Geologic supplies .

Services, December, 1890 .

do .

_ do .

Services, October 1 to Dec. 31, 1890.

Services, December, 1890 .

Services, October 1 to Dec. 31, 1890.

...do . . .

_ do . . .

1 _ do .

Services, December, 1890 .

- do .

_ do .

...do .

_ do .

Total

WCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

175

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.-

1890.
Dec. 8

George Ryneal, jr .

Donald Barr .

S. J. Kiibel .

Edward J. Hannan .

Z. D. Gilman . . .

Ernest Kiibel .

Springman & Bro .

Pay roll of employes .

Total .

For what paid.

Amount.

Engravers’ supplies .

Services, December 1-5, 1890

Traveling expenses . .

Renovating sink .

Engravers’ supplies .

Copper plates .

Hauling, etc .

Services, December, 1890 _

$1.60
16. 30
19. 15
23. 58
18. 75
74. 40
15. 00
761. 35

030. 13

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Earl, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during December, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.

Dec. 4
4

5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9

20
22
22
22
23

R. M. Towson .

_ _ do .

Charles E. Cook, pay roll .

w. T. Quill in .

_ _ do .

~W. M. Beaman .

_ _ do .

M. B. Lambert .

_ do .

A. F. Dudley .

_ _ do .

Castle & Henshaw .

D. C. Harrison .

W. H. Lovell .

Field expenses .

J. J . Eawbush .

J. L. Bridwell

A. F. Dudley .

Traveling: expenses .

_ do .

Charles M. Yeates .

_ do .

_ _ do .

H. B. Blair

. . . .do .

c. G. Van Hook .

Field expenses .

Jeff. D. Reagan .

_ do .

c. T. Reid . . .

Hume & Co .

_ do .

A. E. Murlin \ .

W. M. Beaman .

_ do . .

- do .

Traveling expenses .

$99. 13
50. 71
232. 80
13. 33
3. 30
103. 25
101.44
99. 46
7.38
4.75
146. 00
96. 84
82. 05
139. 49
15. 00
75. 43
114. 20

68. 40
77. 38
29. 15
21.00
69. 59

279. 04

23. 40

73.40
46. 98
11.45
54. 13
22. 50

394. 70
54. 20
199. 69
40. 58
47. 55
18.33
25. 00
187. 35
17.05
24. 25

11. 29
20. 20
67. 60
41.95

36. 30
182. 00

10. 41
2.81
GO. 00
13. 00
15. 53
38. 83
2. 00
6. 24
83.62
15. 30
119. 34
42. 17
34. 99

176

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR V. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher

1891.
Dec. 23

100

101

102

103

104

105

106

107

108

109

110

111

112

113

114

115

To whom paid.

C. W. Goodlove .

E. C. Barnard .

W. H. Lovell .

J. J. Mason . .

J. B. Hammond .

J. J. Mason .

Albert M. Walker .

. ... do .

Frank Sutton .

A. E. Murlin, pay roll .

W. H. Lovell . .

M. Hackett . .

H. E. Williams .

M. Hackett, pay roll .

Charles E. Cook, pay roll .

C. G. Van Hook .

E. T. Brock . .

J. H. Hager ty .

H. B. Blair .

G. W. & C. B. Colton .

George S. Harris & Sons .

_ do .

Edward Kiibel .

E. C. Barnard .

Lincoln Martin .

. do .

E. C. Barnard . ; .

_ do .

M. Hackett .

C. W. Goodlove .

C. G . Van Hook . .

Basil Duke .

M. B. Lambert .

. ... do . .

W. R. Atkinson .

_ do .

Robert D. Cummin . .

F. P. Metzger .

H. B. Blair .

Robert I). Cummin .

Office Specialty Manufacturing

Company.

.T. L. Bowdie .

John H. Renshawe .

F. H. Clark .

W. & L. E. Gurley .

James L. Southard .

W. F. Fling .

James Goode .

Julius Bien & Co .

Isaac Crump .

Hinkel, Craig & Co .

Hersey Munroe .

- do '. .

George S. Harris & Sons .
Pay roll .

Total

For what paid.

Amount.

$4. 75
107. 35
7. 75

...do..... .

Field expenses .

14. 85
43. 50

Field expenses .

44. 50

. . .do .

14. 50

11. 06

J O 1 .

. do .

13. 34

354. 43

47. 77
70. 66

. . .do .

65. 00

Services, December .

362. 09

. . .do .

236. 10

. . .do .

84. 20

Storage .

5. 50

Forage .

43. 00

134. 80

Maps .

4. 00

...do .

161. 00

. . .do .

17. 50

11. 25

146. 95
58. 25

do .

. . .do .

26. 00

189. 71

. . .do .

377. 53

23. 65

Field expenses .

120. 60

Services, December .

70. 80

16. 36

Field expenses .

60. 00

_ do .

168. 99

17. 98

. . .do .

21. 86

...do .

40. 10

40. 80

72. 18

3.00

Services, December .

25. 80

Pay roll, December .

970. 40

...do .

1 621.80

. . . do .

L 940. 00
25. 16

Services, December .

17. 50

Services, December .

28. 00

27. 35

Services, December .

50. 00

225. 00

Forage and storage .

69. 00

Storage .

6. 00

143. 75

84.20

330. 00

Services .

848. 30

13, 944. 83

special disbursing agent, U. S.

Geological

Survey, during December, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
D«C. 1
2
4

6
6

G. K. Gilbert .

C. L. Whittle .

Beckham & Corum
W. P. J enney .

5 N. H. Darton _

(i W. Zensser & Co
17 James G. Bowen .

Traveling expenses .

Services, November, 1890 .

Forage, etc .

Services, September 1 to November
30, 1890.

Traveling expenses .

Supplies .

Forage of public animals .

$32. 23
100. 00
13. 75
544. 10

74. 94
3. 75
21. 00

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

177

Abstract of disbursements made by C. I). Davis, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

1890.
Dec. 6

To whom paid.

For what paid. Amount.

| Frank Leverett .

Gilbert van Ingen . .
George H. Williams

Services, November, 1890 .

. . .do .

Services, October and November,

$120. 00
75. 00
190. 00

1890.

J. E. Wolff .

J. F. Masten .

F. M. Kinne .

R. S. Tarr .

J. E. Wolff .

Ben K. Emerson . . .

W. S. Bay ley .

Fred. N. Honeywell

Richard Bliss .

Joseph A. Holmes .

Traveling expenses .

Forage of public animals .

Services, November 1 to 11, 1890 ....

Services, November 1 to 7, 1890 .

Services, November, 1890 .

...do .

. . .do . I

Services, August 1 to December 1,

4.15
30, 00
13, 50
12. 00
45. 65
97.80
72. 50
63.00
24. 30
270. 00

1890.

S. Ward Loper .

R. S. Tarr .

Arthur Keith .

Warren Upham .

The Eastman Company
Lawrence C. Johnson . .

Henry Palmer .

Henry A. Clarke & Son

E. L. Washburne .

N. B. Dunn .

Frank Leverett .

J. B. Woodworth .

Sam C. Partridge .

H. W. Turner .

_ do .

R. A. F. Penrose, jr .

T. Nelson Dale .

Cooper Curtice .

C. L. Whittle .

W. P. Jeuney .

_ do .

W. Lindgren .

Lawrence C. Johnson . .
C. L. Whittle .

S. Ward Loper .

_ do .

George E. Luther .

Ben G. Palmer .

C. L. Whittle .

J. E. Wolff .

W.B. Clark .

N. S. Slialer .

Pay roll of emjdoves . . .

....do . : .

_ do .

C. R. Van Hise .

Raphael Pumpelly .

Traveling expenses .

_ do .

Services, November 1 to 30, 1890 .

Field material .

Traveling expenses .

- do .

1 typewriter .

Supplies .

Pasturage, etc .

Traveling expenses .

- do . .• .

Photo, supplies .

Traveling expenses .

Field expenses .

Traveling expenses .

Services, December, 1890 .

Traveling expenses .

_ do .

Field expenses .

Services, December, 1890 .

. . . .do .

Field expenses .

Services, November 23 to 27, 1890
Services, December 1 to 14, 1890 .

Services, December, 1890 .

....do .

...do .

....do .

....do . . .

_ do .

Total

15. 75
25. 52
241.09
97. 80
2. 20
162. 72
10. 75
85. 00
3.87
28. 60
53. 95
56.41
13. 35
143. 95

31.25
8. 38

151.60
111.90
328. 99
52. 20
33.71
134. 80
117. 90
26. 87
7. 50
27. 82
101. 10
25. 00
100. 00

53.26
125. 00
270. 00

1, 934. 40
389. 40
1, 499. 60
337. 00
337. 00

8,' 953. 31

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent, XJ. S. Geological

Survey, during December, 1890.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1890.
Dec. 2
9
9
9
10
10

Carver Mercantile Company

Walter H. Weed . ! .

John S. Mendenhall .

Pay roll of employ6s .

C. N. Sargent & Co .

E. J. Owen house .

Total

Field supplies .

$30. 07
34. 62

Field supplies .

53. 09

Salaries, October, 1890 .

173. 38

23. 38

30. 55

345. 09

12 GEOL - 12

178

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. Rizer, disbursing agent, U. S. Geological Survey,

during part of the second quarter of 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

1890.
Dee. 19

432

Idaho Saddlery Co .

Supplies .

433

434

435

...do .

_ do .

436

_ _ do .

437

_ _ do .

438

_ _ do .

439

_ _ do .

440

_ _ do .

441

_ _ do .

442

_ do .

443

W. T. Griswold .

_ do .

444

... .do .

445

.... do . . .

446

M. L. Wood . .

447

Field expenses .

448

A. F. Mack .

449

450

Payroll, Goode .

_ do .

451

Pay roll, Bien .

452

Pay roll, McKee .

453

Redick H. McKee .

Services, December .

454

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

.... do .

_ _ do .

456

457

Redick H. McKee .

Field expenses .

458

_ do .

_ do.... .

459

_ do .

. . . .do .

460

. . . .do .

_ do .

461

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

_ do .

462

"William H. Herron .

_ _ do .

463

_ do .

_ _ do .

464

.... do .

465

Frank Tweedy .

_ do .

466

467

Alex. C. Barclay .

Field expenses .

468

Paul Holman .

_ do .

469

Samuel A. Foot .

. . . .do .

470

Willard D. Johnson .

... .do .

471

....do .

472

C. H. Fitch .

_ _ do .

473

Philip Weiss .

_ _ do .

474

W. J. Harrel .

475

William Davis .

_ do .

476

F. M. Smith .

_ _ do .

477

John McConn .

_ do .

478

Pay roll, Foote .

....do .

479

Pay roll, Holman .

_ do .

480

Pay roll, Barclay .

. . . .do .

481

Pay roll, Hays .

_ .do _ _

482

Pay roll, Marshall .

_ do .

483

Pay roll, Post .

...do .

484

Pay roll, Perry Fuller .

_ do .

485

Pay roll, Johnson .

486

Pav roll, Farmer .

.... do .

487

William P. Trowbridge .

. . . .do .

488

J. M. Dikeman .

_ do .

489

F. J. Knight .

.... do .

490

T. M. Bannon .

_ do .

491

Jeremiah Ahern .

....do .

492

... .do .

• 31

493

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

_ _ do .

494

William H. Herron .

_ do .

495

Redick H. McKee .

_ do .

496

A. F. Mack .

497

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

498

Redick H. McKee .

499

500

Samuel McDowell .

501

A. R. Black .

502

Denver Transit and Warehouse

503

Co.

_ do .

504

Samuel A. Foot .

505

Coxhead & Harrel .

506

_ do .

507

St. J ames Hotel .

Subsistence .

Amount.

$17. 75
5. 00

16. 90
48. 75
88. 95
20. 50

31.50
83. 35
69. 82
18. 50
30. 00

70. 00
189. 84

72. 60
36. 00

48. 50
25. 00

1, 903. 00
1, 210. 80
541. 56
259. 40
134. 80
101. 10
134. 80
11.30
36.47
27. 92
57.26
36. 67
110. 85
71.65
15. 95

71. 55
58. 95

123. 50
126. 97
32. 45
37. 80
24. 40

168. 50
151.60

20. 32
24.67
24.67
75. 00
50. 00
119. 03
155. 80

229. 20
317. 63
301.10
255. 77

134. 20

234. 20

260. 50
100. 00

60. 00
151.60
75. 00

117. 90

90. 90
126. 50

55. 15
125. 00
5. 75
2. 25
41.04
48. 60
60. 00

542. 50
20. 00

20. 00
29. 25
9. 00

7.50

20. 00

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

179

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. Rizer, disbursing agent , etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.
Dec. 31
31

508

$7. 50
39. 35
48. 00
13. 00
10.00
23. 05
51.25
53 50

509

510

511

Porage .

512

513

514

515

Board .

516

50 00

517

Jeff. D. Reagan .

_ do .

60. 00

518

_ _ do .

40. 32

519

Pay roll, McKinney .

.... do .

284. 80

520

Prank Prater . . .

72. 80

521

Andrew McClelland .

126. 87

522

A. McClelland .

50. 82

523

_ do .

33. 92

524

30.05

525

_ do .

_ _ do .

103. 80

526

. . . .do .

63. 50

527

15. 00

528

Ed. Boehme .

18. 00

529

E. C. Kelsey .

45.00

Total .

11,473.27

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, chief disbursing clerk U. 8.

Geological Survey, during January, 1S91.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.

Jan. 13

H. A. C. Hunter .

C. C. Willard .

Robert Beall .

Richmond and Danville R. R -

Baker & Adamson .

Missouri Pacific R. R. Co .

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe
R. R.

William P. Rust .

Chicago, Milwaukee and St.
Paul R’y.

James W. Queen & Co .

_ do .

National Press Intelligence Co .
Buffalo Dental Manufacturing
Co.

Washington Gaslight Co .

Melville Lindsay .

Wash. B. Williams .

Robert Leitcli & Son .

Fred. A. Schmidt .

William D. Clark & Co .

Smithsonian Institution .

E. E. Jackson & Co .

Baltimore and Ohio R. R. Co _

Z. D. Gilman .

Smedley Brothers&Co .

Samuel Springmann .

J. F. Sabin .

David Williams .

N. D. C. Hodges .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co .

Atchison, Topeka and Santa F6

Traveling expenses .

Rent of office December, 1890 .

Publications .

Transportation of assistants .

Laboratory supplies .

Transportation of assistants .

....do .

Services, December, 1890 .

Transportation of assistants .

Laboratory supplies .

Geologic supplies . . .

Newspaper clippings .

Laboratory supplies .

_ do .

...do .

Supplies .

Topographic supplies .

Supplies .

Topographic supplies .

Transportion of exchanges .

Supplies .

Transportation of property .

Supplies .

Transportation of property .

Freight charges and hauling. .

Publications .

_ do .

. . . .do .

Transportation of assistants .

- do .

$•16. 65
266. 66
9. 00
71.65
26. 60
17. 15
50. 45

67. 50
31.50

212. 25
78. 37
7. 80
40. 30

63. 25

3.44
56. 00
12.24

8.45
.75

28. 97
17.03
15. 12
150. 54
84. 15
4.38
4.00
10. 00
7. 00
69.30
6. 55

R. R.

Charles L. Condit .

Gustav E. Stechert . . .

- do .

W. Andrew Boyd .

J. Walther _ .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co

Frank Burns .

George W. Knox .

Wash. B. Williams . . .

C. C. Willard .

H. Hoffa .

Supplies for mineral resources

Publications .

_ do .

...do .

Topographic supplies .

Transportation of assistants. . .

Traveling expenses .

Freight charges and hauling. .

Topographic supplies .

Rent of office, January, 1891. . .
Paleontologic supplies .

9.50
18. 72
97. 55
25. 00
48. 00
34.61
36. 95
181.99
71.00
266. 66
5. 50

180

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursments made by Jno. ll. McChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.
Jan. 29
29

George Ryneal, jr .

Supplies .

$401.28
53. 39

Smectley Brothers & Co .

Transportation of property . ..

79. 98

Baltimore and Ohio R. R. Co ....

Transportation of property .

76. 15

150. 00

Services, January. 1891 .

120. 60

... .do .

215. 30

. . . .do .

155. 00

O. C. Marsh .

_ do .

344.40

_ do .

80. 00

L. P. Bush .

_ do .

50. 00

H. Gibb .

. . . .do .

80. 00

Transportation of assistant .

67. 50

Services, December 24 to 31, 1890 -

Services, January, 1891 .

10.00

52. 00

Frank T. Smart .

Services January, 1891 .

103. 30

. . . .do .

1, 351. 80

_ _ do . . .

... .do .

L 310. 70
1,017.16
976. 17

... .do . .

_ do .

. . . .do .

_ do .

1,419.30
1, 188. 00
792. 10

_ do .

. . . .do .

_ do .

. . . .do .

378. 90

Services January 12 to 31, 1891 .

32. 26

Total .

12, 799. 82

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

William D.‘ Clark & Co .

George W. Knox .

Freight charges and hauling .

Total .

1891.
Jan. 14
16
26
29
31

$58. 00
1.07
29. 38
5.13
883. 42

977. 60

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during January, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Jan. 31
31

C. G. Van Hook .

Field expenses .

Charles E. Cooke .

... .do .

Savannah, Florida and Western

Transportation .

R. R.

Savannah, Florida and Western

Transportation .

R. R.

Benson, Roux & Co .

Repairs .

Gainesville Furniture Manu-

Field material .

factoring Co.

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

Field expenses .

H. B. Blair .

. . . .do .

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

.... do .

C.G. Van Hook". .

Traveling expenses .

... .do .

....do .

Charles M. Yeates, pay roll .

Services, January .

Ewing Speed .

Services, December, 1890 .

Hersev Munroe, pay roll .

Services. January .

Henry Gannett .

_ do . 1

John H. Renshawe, pay roll .

.... do .

• 22

Gilbert Thompson, pay roll .

... .do .

Benson, Roux* & Co. .'. .

Storage .

Ira M. Buell .

Services .

$106. 95
10. 00
6. 00
7. 10
177. 16
40.60

72. 30

16. 85
103. 60

42.25
17. 50

354. 17
250. 09
107. 64

22. 85

10. 30
583. 67

50. 00
340. 73

1, 922. 00
2, 189. 55

2. 058. 24

56.00
14. 00

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

181

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Earl, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY — Continued.

Rate.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

1891.
Jan. 31

Rees Evans .

Traveling expenses .

... .do .

I. M. Buell .

George 13. Taylor .

Storage .

John W. Price .

J. M. Gibson .

_ do .

N. 13. Dunn .

_ do .

.... do .

J. ii . Hagerty .

Forage .

Winchester Manufacturing Co. .

Storage .

S. E. Cook .

Traveling expenses .

J ames Goode .

.... do .

F. Howard Seeley .

_ do .

.... do .

E. Baird . . .

Field expenses .

Basil Duke .

Traveling expenses .

Material .

. . . .do .

H. E. Williams .

_ do .

AV. T. Quillin .

.... do .

_ do .

F. Howard Seeley' .

_ do .

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

... .do .

Albert M. Walker .

.... do .

_ do .

James Goode .

_ do .

... .do .

Field expenses .

. . . .do

... .do .

Ewing Speed .

Field expenses .

... .do .

Services .

AV. E. Lackland .

_ do .

... .do .

H. B. Blair .

Field expenses .

M. E. Kahler .

H. B. Blair .

Field expenses .

J. S. Topliani .

Material" .

Field expenses .

_ do .

.... do .

. . . .do .

H. B. Blair .

C. G. Yan Hook .

_ do .

H. E. Williams . .

Services .

_ do .

II. L. Baldwin, /i - .

. . . .do. ' . ,xp . ; ;

_ do .

J. J. Mason .

_ do .

Albert M. AValker .

. . . .do .

C. G. Van Hook. 1 .

Field expenses .

J. L. Bridwell .

. . . .do .

... .do .

Charles M. Yeates .

... .do .

J. M. Fawbush _

100

Office Specialty Manufacturing

Office furniture .

101

Co.

W. &. L. E. Gurley .

Total .

Amount.

$5.20

3. 45
4.35
4.85

13. 14
3. 30

34. 50
77. 56
77. 58

9.03
6. 77
62. 22

35. 00
10. 00
12.66

4. 78

10. 00
15. 30
19. 75
38. 45

31. 70
55. 50
29. 60

165. 15
46. 80
10. 20
11.29
168. 90
9. 55
65. 00
27. 42
14. 51
62. 25
75. 17
75. 17
155. 00
60. 00
50. 00
50. 00
33. 57
12. 50
75. 80

54. 10
17.00

71. 75

19.71

34.83

72. 30

49.10
240. 05

23. 40
67.75
27.70
132. 18
42. 43

11. 80

51.25
37.42
65. 00

34.84

12. 25

60. 45

11. 25
46. 65
12. 50

74. 15
12. 50
12. 95
64.67

16.25
29. 70

37.45
65. 36
32. 50
41.00
25. 00

26. 00

11, 925. 75

182

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by C. I>. Davis, special disbursing agent, V. S.

> Survey , during January, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

1891.
Jan. 5

W. P. Jen no y .

Services, Becomher, 1890 .

_ _ do .

AV. S. Bayley ° .

. . . .do .

_ .do .

Services, November, 1890 .

.... do .

Services, September 1 to December
19, 1890.

Field expenses .

J. M. Salford .

Traveling exnenses .

...do .

. . . .do .

Field expenses .

R. E. Dodge .

Services, December, 1890 .

_ do .

Forage, etc .

_ do .

W arren U pham .

Services, December, 1890 .

Pasturage .

_ do .

P. J. Littlehale .

Pasturage, etc .

(diaries J. Moore .

Services, October 1 to December 31,
1890.

AV. F. Fling .

Pasturage .

A. P. Baker .

Rent of office .

m [ V- & .

James M. McCamnion .

Pasturage .

Traveling expenses .

Fuel .

T. Nelson Bale .

Field supplies .

William B. Clark .

Services, January 1-15, 1891 . .

C. R. Van Hise .

Field expenses . . .

W J McGee .

Traveling expenses .

William Beals, ir .

_ _ do .

J. M. Safford .

_ do .

AV. F. Fling .

Pasturage .

Traveling expenses .

Field expenses .

AV. T. Turner _ ” .

Services, November 1 to December

C. AV. Hall .

3, 1890.

Services, August 4 to December 31,
1890.

Stationery .

E. C. van Biest .

Services, October 1 to December 1,
1890.

Rent of rooms .

Joseph H. Perry .

Traveling expenses .

_ do .

Services, September 1 to December
31,1890.

Services, January, 1891 .

_ do .

AV. P. Jenney . .

....do .

_ do .

...do .

_ do .

J. B. Woodworth .

....do .

R. E. Bodge .

....do .

J. E. AVolff .

_ do .

AV. S. Bayley .

_ _ do .

George E. Luther .

_ do .

AV. N. Merriam .

.... do .

N. S. Slialer .

. . . .do .

Frank Leverett . ' _

. .do .

Ben . G . Palmer .

_ do .

Raphael Pumpelly .

_ do .

C. R. ATm Hise ..' .

_ do .

Raphael Pumpelly .

Traveling expenses .

AVilliam H. Dali .

_ do. .......... .t .

I. M. K. Soutliwick .

Supplies .

Geological

Amount.

$185. 30
75. 00
95. 00
130. 00

8.33
24.46
20. 00

2. 25
9. 63
25. 00
21.20

94. 40

24. 00
30.00
50. 00
10. 00

21.50
101.10

45. 00
74. 50

25. 50
5. 91

540. 00

26. 40
18. 00
43. 75

9. 10
2.00
74. 82
106. 87
33. 70
14. 23
55. 00
33. 35
79. 32
153. 08
6.20
11.32
45. 85

48.50
82. 92

27.42

63. 00

15.31
10. 00
50. 00

43. 75
27.18
24.00

180. 25
120. 60
155. 00

189. 40
50. 00

137. 80
1, 532. 70
202. 50
2, 176. 00
50. 00
30. 00
70.00
90. 00
103. 30
85. 00
270. 00
135. 00
25. 00

344.40

344. 40

118.41

78.42

7. 34

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

183

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR IT. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.
Jan. 31
31
31
31

S. H. Davis .

Pasturage .

$24. 00
74. 97
179. 74
13. 23

9, 510. 61

L. C. Johnson .

N. S. S haler .

Traveling expenses .

.... do .

Raphael Pumpelly .

Total .

Field expenses .

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during January, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Jan. 31
31

Pay roll of employes .

... .‘do . . .

Salaries, December, 1890 .

Total .

$741. 30
757. 70

1,499. 00

Abstract of disbursements made by James IF. Spencer, special disbursing agent, TJ. S. Geo¬
logical Survey, during the month of January, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Jan. 13
13
13
16
16
16
16
17
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
21
21 1
21
21
23
23
23
26
26 ■
27

27
31
29
29
29
29
29
29

31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31

8
9

20
21
22

John McConn .

H. H. Chinulea .

Perry Fuller .

Mark 15. Kerr .

F. E. Conrad & Co .

Rockwell Bros .

A. A. Rockwell .

Frank Tweedy .

Morris Bien .

E. M. Douglas .

L. B. Kendall .

T. E. Grafton .

R. B. Marshall .

_ do . ....

William S. Post .

A. P. Davis .

A. Momalian .

William S. Post .

Tenny Ross .

L. B. Kendall .

Samuel A. Foot .

W. T. Griswold .

E. H. Stone .

E. M. Douglas .

Spratlen & Anderson. . . .

F. M. Call .

Stuart P. Johnson .

Charles W. Howall .

R. C. McKinney .

Alex. C. Barclav .

- do . 1 .

... .do .

- do .

W. A. Farish .

William S. Post .

Amos Scott .

John Jones .

N. J. Davis .

Robert A. Farmer .

C. H. Fitch .

W.L. Wilson .

Arthur P. Davis .

Pay roll, A. H. Thompson

- do .

J.M. Dikeman .

I George L. Robinson .

Traveling expenses .

- do .

...do . . .

. . .do .

Forage .

Pasturage .

Services, November and December.

Field expenses .

. . .do .

.. .do .

. . .do .

Traveling expenses .

- do .

Field expenses .

_ do .

— do .

. . .do .

Forage .

Traveling expenses .

_ do .

— do .

Field expenses .

Traveling expenses .

Field expenses .

Subsistence expenses .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do . . . .

Services, January .

Field expenses .

_ do . _ .

Traveling expenses .

_ do .

_ do . . .

...do .

- do .

Services, December, 1890, and J an-
uary, 1891.

Repairs .

Transportation .

Traveling expenses .

Services, January .

- do .

Field expenses .

Services, January .

- do .

. . .do .

Forage .

Total

$32. 00
59. 75

59. 75
124. 00

65. 27
23. 22
36. 67
30. 00
11. 50

48.50
110. 27

72.60
72. 60
49. 16
246. 47
60.00
30. 75
25. 14
61.75
72. 35

73.85

37. 50

71.85
11.70
35.31

14.85

72. 85

60. 00
10. 00
51.42

71.85
4. 90
8. 00

10. 50
61.75
120. 00

4. 00
9. 67
7] . 85
155. 00
17. 74
50. 79
4, 519. 64
737. 10
60. 00
55. 00

7, 688. 87

184 ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, chief disbursing clerk, U. S. Geo¬
logical Survey, during February, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR IT. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

1891.
Feb. 4
4

14
14
14
14
14
16
16

8
9

20
21
22

Charles G. Stott & Co .

Adams Express Co .

_ do .

T. W. Stanton .

Washington Gaslight Co .

E. J. Pullman .

The Wabash R. R. Co .

William Grunow, jr .

Ira Sayles .

Emil Qreiner . .

Charles J. Cohen .

Northern Pacific Ry. Co . .

John C. Parker . . . .

John S. Leng’s Son & Co. .

W.P. Rust .

Baltimore & Ohio R. R. Co
. . . .do

William F. Porter .

Ellen L. Cudlip and Fillmore
Beall.

E. E. Jackson & Co .

Columbia Phonograph Co
E. & H. T. Anthony <fc Co
The Eastman Company
Pennsylvania R. R. Co
The Wabash R. R. Co
International and Great North¬
ern R. R.

Supplies .

Freight charges, July and Novem
her, 1890.

Freight charges, December, 1890. .

Traveling expenses .

Laboratory supplies .

Supplies .

Transportation of assistants .

Laboratory supplies .

Traveling expenses . .

Laboratory supplies .

Geologic supplies . .

Transportation of assistants .

Topographic supplies .

Laboratory supplies .

Services, January, 1891 . .

Transportation of property .

do .

Publications .

Supplies for illustrations .

Supplies . . .

Rent of graphophone . .

Supplies for illustrating .

Geologic supplies . 1 . .

Transportation of assistants .

do .

_ do .

28
29

Great Northern Railway Line .

W. D. Doremus .

Atchison, Topeka and Sant F6

. . .do .

Laboratory supplies .

Transportation of assistants

R.R.

25
25
25 '
25
28
28
28
28
28
28
28
28
28

60
61

J. Bishop & Co .

Wash. B. Williams .

Rio Grande Western Ry. Co _

- do .

L. Feuchtwanger A Co .

Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri
Valley R. R.

Whitall, Tatum & Co .

American Tool and Machine Co.

James W. Queen & Co .

Eimer & Amend .

Buffalo Dental Manufacturing
Co.

T. M. Chatard .

Samuel Springmann .

L. H. Schneider’s Son .

Fred. A. Schmidt .

Mary C. Mahon .

Victoria Essex .

Samuel H. Scudder .

J. Henry Blake .

O. C. Marsh .

F. Berger .

L. P. Bush .

C. C. Willard .

Leonard A. White .

Repairs to laboratory material

Geologic supplies .

Transportation of assistants . .

_ do .

Laboratory supplies .

Transportation of property . . .

Laboratory supplies .

_ do .

. . . .do .

- do .

_ do .

Traveling expenses .

Freight charges and hauling. .

Supplies .

Topographic supplies .

Services, February, 1891 .

...do . .

. . .do .

Rent of office .

Services, January 29 to February
28, 1891.

Pay roll of employes

_ do .

- do .

....do .

_ do .

Services, February, 1891

. . .do .

.. .do .

...do .

. . .do .

...do .

Amount.

.$10. 42
147. 00

183. 50
50. 72
54. 63
357. 11

11.25
175. 00

14. 05
14.30
41.20
2. 60
10. 05
6. 00
67.50
25. 45
.98
7. 00
89.11

203. 05
101.43

6. 50

13. 50
322. 20

41.25
40. 00

280. 50
119.19
82. 40

9. 40
20. 00
25. 00
24.00

9. 00
14. 36

17. 38
27. 50

7. 50
155. 35

29. 80

138. 64

9.41
53. 56

14. 20
39. 00
39. 00

194. 40
140. 00
311. 20
80. 00
50. 00
266. 66
54.84

1, 221. 40
1, 208. 60
805. 80
901. 60
1,400. 20
1, 066. 90
765. 80
342. 20

Total

11,920.59

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

185

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, etc. — Continued,
APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

Date.

V oucher.

1891.

'eb. 5

To whom paid.

H. Holffa .

Melville Lindsay .

Ernest Kiibel .

Robert Mayer & Co .

James K. Cleary .

E. E. Jackson & Co .

E. G. Wheeler .

George Meier & Co .

R. Hoe & Co .

Robert Mayer & Co .

Wash. B. Williams .

U. S. Electric Lighting Co

Charles Credner .

Mount Holly Paper Co ... .

L. H. Schneider’s Son .

Pay roll of employes .

For what paid

Engraver’s supplies .

Printer’s blanket .

Electrotyping, &.c .

Engraver’s supplies .

. . .do .

...do .

_ do .

. . .do .

Use of 4 horse power currents

Japanese vellum paper .

Lithographic and plate paper .

Engraver’s supplies .

Services, February, 1891 .

Amount.

$18. 00
6. 81
43.48
15. 00
4. 50
108. 73
1. 50
58.90
4. 00
1. 15
71. 00
12. 50
19. 65
15. 66
4. 80
960. 37

Total

1,346. 05

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during February, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Feb. 20
20

$200. 52
147 50

_ _ do .

....do .

142. 50

_ _ do .

105. 62

351. 96

24-28

194. 40

14-24

... .do .

1 24. 40

II. M. Wilson .

. . . .do .

194. 40

Pay roll, Gannett .

1, 596. 00

2. 223. 63

Pay roll .

1, 393. 80
65. 40

Services .

Office material .

1.75

333. 40

Services .

19. 29

L. C. Woodbury .

. . . .do .

50. 00

. . . .do .

70. 00

_ _ do .

140. 00

_ do .

40. 00

_ .do .

7. 74

_ _ do .

6. 77

. . . .do .

_ do .

30. 00

Albert M. Walker" . .

_ do .

60. 00

_ _ do .

•50. 00

11 28

R. B. Cameron .

_ do .

65.40

Traveling expenses .

33.80

W. R. Atkinson .

Services .

93.40

10. 00

W. R. Atkinson .

Field expenses .

159. 43

... .do .

Traveling expenses .

14. 05

Field expenses .

126. 87

45. 00

... .do .

_ do .

39. 19

_ do .

6. 45

N. B. Dunn .

_ do .

68. 08

_ _ do .

69. 00

_ _ do .

10. 00

W. F. Fling .

_ do .

42. 00

. . . .do .

Flags .

7. 00

William D. Clark <fc Co .

Office material .

39. 45

Isaac Crump .

Pasturage .

69. 00

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

Field expenses .

469. 90

J. H. Means .

Services .

70. 00

Total .

9, 040. 60

186

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during February, 1S91.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.
Feb. 6

$22. 50

27. 00

2.60

. . .do .

Services, December, 1890 .

4.80

J M Safford

do . . . .

4.89

8. 00

45. 00

143. 20

25. 50

121. 30

75. 00

. . do° . .

30. 00

J. E. Wolff

30. 00

9. 00

43. 00

w. B. Leonard _

175. 00

William H. Hobbs . .

31.73

C. L. Whittle .

Services, January, 1891 .

100. 00

4.95

10. 00

217.50

53.85

80. 00

213. 07

Services, February. 1891 .

140. 00

103. 30

Services, Februarv, 1891 .

108. 80

28'

....do .

50. 00

... .do .

30. 00

C. L. Whittle

_ do .

100. 00

W. P. Jenney .

_ _ do .

171. 20

_ _ do .

30. 00

W. S. Barley

82. 50

George E. Luther .

93.40

W. !N. Merriam .

_ _ do . .

80. 00

N.S. Shaler . .

_ _ do .

240. 00

Edmund Jiissen .

... .do .

50. 00

J. M. Safford .

1.55

_ _ do .

5. 00

Raphael Pumpelly .

Services, February, 1891 .

311.20

C. R. Van Hise .

... .do .

311.20

Pay roll of employes .

_ do .

1, 383. 40
319.40

_ do .

.... do .

_ do .

1, 965. 50

Total .

7, 054. 34

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geologi¬
cal Survey, during February, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Feb. 4
28

1 E. J. Owenhouse _

2 Pay roU of employes

Total .

Storage .

Salaries, February, 1891

$30. 00
684. 60

714. 60

Abstract, of disbursements made by James W. Spencer, special disbursing agent, U. S.
Geological Survey, during the month of February, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Feb. 4

Paul Holman .

$5. 30
72. 10
50.00
78.15
20. 00
14.50

W.J. Lloyd .

. . . .do . .

John W. Hays .

A. A. Rockwell .

Rockwell Bros .

Pasturage . I .

WCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

187

Abstract of disbursements made by James W. Spencer, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

V oucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.

Forage .

$247. 50
37. 90
74. 55
5. 40

84. 50
70.00
20. 00

13. 50
50. 00
19.93
37 50

Joseph Jacobs .

Subsistence and forage . .

Paul Holman .

Field expenses .

M. Maxwell .

Forage .

J. A. Falkenstrie .

_ .do .

Prank Tweedy .

E. M. Douglas .

_ do .

A. P. Davis .

_ do .

_ _ do .

W. T. Griswold .

_ do .

... .do .

_ _ do .

27 00

Willard D. Johnson .

_ _ do .

123. 05
10. 00
60 00

_ _ do .

Amos Scott .

Services, February, 1891 .

Charles W. Howell .

60 00

J. M. Dikeman .

_ do .

60. 00

D. H. Sager .

8 00

A. H. Thompson, pay roll .

Services, February. 1891 .

4, 533. 20
850. 40

_ do . . .

_ _ do .

Total . - .

6, 632. 48

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, chief disbursing clerk, U. S. Geo¬
logical Survey, during March, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Mar. 6
6
9
9
9

8
9

20
21
22

25
20

Z. D. Gilman .

Charles G. Stott & Co -

Washington Gaslight Co

Melville Lindsay . .

J. S. Newberry . .

Supplies .

. . .do .

Laboratory supplies .

. . .do .

Services July 1 to September 30,
1890.

Baker & Adamson .

S. Ward Loper .

Browne & Sharp M’f'g Co .

William P. Rust .

Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chi¬
cago and St. I.ouis Rwy.

The E. S. Greeley & Co .

Missouri Pacific Rwy. Co .

Baltimore, and Ohio Rwy. Co...

Montana Union Rwy. Co .

Burlington and Missouri River
Railroad in Nebraska.

Texas and Pacific R. R. Co .

Emil Greiner .

F. E. Willis .

Atchison, Topeka and Santa F6

Laboratory supplies .

Services, February, 1891 .

Laboratory material .

Services, February, 1891....
Transportation of assistants

Laboratory supplies .

Transportation of assistants

. . .do .

Transportation of property .
Transportation of assistants

. . .do .

Laboratory supplies .

Illustrations for reports .

Transportation of assistants

R. R.

Smithsonian Institution .

Wyckotf, Seamans & Benedict. .

Jotin C. Parker .

Office Specialty M’f’ g Co .

Fred. A. Schmidt .

Charles L. Condit .

Chicago and Northwestern Rwy.

. do .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co .

Spring Garden Metal W orks . . .
The American Tool and Ma¬
chine Co.

John C. Entriken .

Robert. Beall .

Pay roll of employes .

. . . .do .

_ do .

... .do .

_ do .

....do .

_ do .

Transportation of exchanges .

Supplies and repairs .

Supplies for mineral resources .

Geologic supplies .

Geologic and topographic supplies .

Mercantile speller .

Transportation of assistants .

...do .

do .

Laboratory supplies .

_ do . . .

Repairs to laboratory material .

Publications .

Services, March, 1891 .

_ do .

- do .

_ do .

....do .

_ do .

$244. 55
8. 56
56. 76
10. 46
900. 00

21.90
96. 00

9.00

60.00

17. 51

5.44

43.90
46. 65

2. 20
30. 65

82. 60
10. 65

18. 00
39. 75

676. 92
68.00
1.50
42. 00
11.03
1.75
12. 50
19.26
17.50
17. 83
15. 00

11.55
65. 00
1,351.80
1,310. 70

887. 10
809. 50

1, 436. 60
1,177.70

842.10
378. 90

188

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY — Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

1891.

Mar. 31

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

W. D. Doremus . . .
Alpheus Hyatt,

H. S. Williams

Samuel H. Scudder
J. Henry Blake

O. C. Marsh .

F. Berger .

L. P. Bush .

T. A. Bostwick. . . .

Laboratory supplies .

Services, November 1 to December
31, 1890.

Services, October 1, 1890, to March
31, 1891.

Services, March, 1891 .

. . .do .

...do . .

Services, January 1 to March 31,

$8. 00
500. 00

750. 00

215. 30
155. 00
344.40
80. 00
50. 00
250. 00

A. Hermann .

Wells M. Sawyer .

C. C. Willard .

Wisconsin Central Lines
Jos. F. James .

1891.

. . .do .

Services, March 11 to 31, 1891

Rent of office .

Transportation of assistants
Services, March, 1891.. .

250. 00
52. 50
266. 66
40.48
103. 30

Total

13, 924. 46

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

1891.
Mar. 2

Washington Construction Co. . .

Services and supplies .

$13.25

9. 50

United States Electric Lighting

Use of 4 horse-power current .

25. 00

Co.

. 31

3, 750. 00

Shepherd & Hurley .

Labor and material furnished .

335. 46

Mount Holly Paper Co .

12. 40

Fuchs & Lang .

_ _ do .

13. 50

Robert Mayer & Co .

_ do .

4.50

J. B. Hammond .

23. 10

R. F. Bartle .

35. 00

Fred. A. Schmidt .

...Jo . ...PP. .

12.00

Pay-roll of employes .

Services, March, 1891 .

1, 129. 02

Total .

5, 363. 04

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl , special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during March, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.

John H. Rensliawe .

Traveling expenses .

$140. 95
13. 55

Charles M. Yeates .

. . . .do .

_ do .

71. 34

71.14
70 00

36. 20
50. 00

W. T. Quillin .

C. E. Siebenthal .

.... do . .

65. 00

Duncan Hannegan .

1 ravelin fir expenses .

33. 60

70. 00

rni“* i .

lliomas ( . Nelson .

44. 35

5. 00

N. B. Dunn .

_ do ..*! .

63. 00

Philip Miller .

38. 16

J. M. Gibson .

79. 95

J. B. Efferson .

47.41

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

70. 75

J. M. Fawbush .

35. 00

W. F. Fling .

32. 00

James G. Reaves .

. . . .do . .

10. 00

Pound & Tison .

105. 00

Albert M. Walker .

16.55

R. B. Cameron .

- do .

14.85

JTCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

189

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

1891.

Mar. 25

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Pasturage .

W. R. A tkinson .

Services .

.... do _ *. .

.... do .

Map case .

R. B. Cameron .

_ do .

Howard A. Graham .

_ do .

A. E. Muslin .

. . . .do .

... .do .

W. T. Quillin .

_ _ do .

J. J. Mason .

_ do .

Duncan Hannegan .

. . . .do .

Anton Karl (pay roll, Hersey
Munroe).

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

Field expenses .

Hersey Munroe .

. . . .do .

AV. C. Frye . . .

Anton Karl, pay roll .

_ _ do . .

.... do .

N. B. Dunn .

_ do .

W. R. Atkinson .

. . . .do .

W. T. Fling .

E. T. Brock .

Storage .

George B. Taylor .

.... do .

J. H. Hagerty .

R. M. Harper . .

John W. Price .

Winchester Manufacturing Co. .

C. E. Siebenthal .

E. Root & Co .

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

_ _ do .

Pound & Tison .

H. L.Bal dwin, jr . .

H. E. Williams .

J. J. Mason .

Services .

Amount.

$12. 50
69.00
103. 30
137. 80

4.50
155. 00

72.30

72.30
137.80
77. 50
50. 00
50. 00

72. 30
625. 88

137. 73
231. 65

3.50
2, 190. 30
1,968. 70
1, 767. 00

5. 00
63.00
7.95
172. 37
32. 00
9. 00
9. 00
70. 00
10. 50
184. 99
50. 00
10. 50
15. 00
8.35
102. 50
256. 90
145. 10
62. 25
159. 25
5. 85
50. 00

Total

10, 617. 37

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during March, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Mar. 2
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5

6
6
6
6
6

8
9

20
21
22
23

A. H. Quarles .

W. P. Jenney .

George M. Dockray _

Newport Water Works

Raphael Pumpelly .

Ben. G. Palmer. . . .

A. P. Baker .

W. B. Moses & Sons .-. .

Frank Leverett .

Fred. A. Schmidt _

George H. Eldridge _

James G. Bowen .

James Storrs .

Warren Upham .

C. W. Hall .

P. J. Littenliale .

J. T. Masten .

Joseph A. Holmes .

Z. D. Gilman .

Fred. A. Schmidt .

Richard Bliss .

George H. Eldridge _

_ do .

Services, February 18 to 28, 1891 . . .

Field expenses .

Supplies .

Water rent .

Field expenses .

Services, February, 1891 .

Rent of building .

Office supplies. . . .

Services, February, 1891 .

Geologic supplies' .

Field expenses .

Forage .

Pasturage .

Services, February, 1891 .

Traveling expenses .

Pasturage .

. . .do .

Services, Dec. 1, 1890 to Feb. 1, 1891.

Supplies .

Rubber triangles . » .

Services, February, 1891 .

Traveling expenses .

Field expenses .

!9. 46
6. 65
8.20
9. 00
6. 30
25. 00
43.75
1.00
120. 00
6. 72
34. 05
24. 00
13.00
93.40
73.05
30. 00
45. 00
95. 00
1.20
1.67
24. 30
173. 70
5. 75

190

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by C. 1). Davis , etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

V oucher

1891.
Mar. 25

To whom paid.

W. P. Jenney .

Edmund Jiissen ....

Elisha T. Jencks _

T. H. Willard .

Raphael Pumpelly . .

N. S. Norwood .

_ do .

W. P. Jenney .

Edmund Jiissen

C. E. Kloeber .

W. S. Bayley .

George E. Luther. . .
Beckham & Corum .

L. C. Johnson .

N. S. Shaler .

William H. Norton .

T. Nelson Dale .

J. B. W oodworth

R. E. Dodge .

C. L. Whittle .

W. N. Merriam .

Raphael Pumpelly. .

C. R. Van Hise .

Pay roll of employes

- do .

_ do .

George H. Eldridge .
W. H. Wamsley .

For what paid.

Traveling expenses . .

. . .do .

Section cutter .

Freight charges .

Traveling expenses . .

...do .

. . .do .

Services, March, 1891

...do . .

...do .

. . .do .

Forage .

Services, March, 1891

...do .

. . .do .

...do .

. . .do .

...do . . .

. . .do .

.. do . . .

...do .

Supplies . .

Amount.

$300. 90
136. 74
56. 00
33.40

104. 75
20. 85
37. 75

189. 40
50. 00
30. 00

117. 50
103. 30
16. 00
120. 60
260. 00
20. 00
155. 00
50. 00
30. 00
100. 00

105. 00

344. 40
344. 40

1, 532. 70

2, 046. 80
395. 30
206. 70

9. 00

Total

7, 786. 69

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during March, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Mar. 2

Elwood Hofer .

The Eastman Company
Pay roll of employes.

Services as herder _

Photographic supplies
Services, March, 1891 .

$113. 22
18. 08
757. 70

Total

889. 09

Abstract of disbursements made by James W. Spencer, special disbursing agent, JJ. S. Geo¬
logical Survey, during March, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAE SURVEY.

J. F. Mitchell .

S. S. Mitchell .

_ do...’. . .

William H. Otis .

_ do . .

George L. Robinson .

Forage .

Willard D. Johnson .

Nephi Johnson .

Services, February, 1891 .

Joseph Jacobs .

... .do .

Field expenses .

Denver Transit and W arehouse

Storage .

Co.

_ .do .

_ do .

William Kronig .

Forage .

Fauth & Co.. A. .

Repairs .

J. F. Farmer .

R. C. McKinney .

Field expenses .

J. F. Mitchell .

E. M. Douglas .

Frank Tweedy .

Easton & Rupp .

Willard D. Johnson .

Field expenses .

$60. 00
60. 00
30. 00
50.00
50. 00
55. 00
5. 61
60.00
60. 00
40.66
20. 00

20.00
147. 56
5. 75
5. 50
5. 55
15. 48
13. 50
15. 00
1.90
10. 00

STCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

191

Abstract of disbursements made by James IF. Spencer, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SERVE V— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.

A. P. Davis .

Field expenses .

$40. 00
48 00

W. T. Griswold .

... .do .

M. J. Eaely .

24 92

Frank Tweedy .

162. 00
108. 45
17. 95

Sparks Bros .

Coffin & Seeton .

_ do .

100

Roberts & Co .

7. 10

101

J. W. Dobbins .

30. 00

102

Amos Scott .

_ do .

60. 00

103

J. M. Dikeman .

... .do .

60. 00

104

Charles W. Howell .

_ _ do .

60. 00

105

William H. Otis .

_ _ do .

50.00

106

S. S. Mitchell .

.... do .

50. 00

107

J. F. Mitchell .

11 00

108

E. G. Amick .

40. 00

109

J. W. Maloney .

. . . . do . .

8. 00

110

60. 00

111

James Shumway .

50. 00

112

. . . .do .

16. 07

113

50. 00

114

Payroll “A. H. T” .

5, 008. 40

115

. . . .do .

_ _ do .

894. 80

116

14. 40

117

55. 00

118

Wright, Peck & Co .

45. 00

119

268. 40

120

. . . .do .

23. 21

121

4. 25

122

40. 00

Total .

8, 038. 46

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. Rizer, disbursing agent, U. S. Geological Sur¬
vey, during the third quarter of 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Jan. 6
6
6

8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9

_ do .

....do .

E. T. Perkins, jr .

Traveling expenses .

Feed .

.... do .

R. R. Marshall .

Field expenses .

. . . .do .

Subsistence .

. . . .do .

.... do .

... .do .

_ _ do .

. . . .do . - .

_ do .

_ _ do .

_ do .

... .do .

B. F. Acuff & Co . .

Forage .

....do. .

. . . .do .

o .

± orage .

_ _ do .

_ do .

... .do .

_ _ do .

_ do .

T. M Call

J. W. Martin .

Subsistence .

$50. 80
127. 07
543. 81
00. 00
25. 00
05. 25
11.75
23.35
28. 65
80.01
230. 73
45. 90
84.45
100. 00
12. 00
24. 00
33. 50
40.80
26. 80
23.20
77. 53
82. 86
37. 58
24. 50

5. 00

6. 79
52. 46

1.50
22.90
14. 00
20. 15
30. 25
11.25
14. 00

4.66
68.05
58. 50

192

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. Bizer, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

J W. Martin .

C. L. Wall .

Material .

_ do .

E. P. Slattery .

R. C. McKinnney .

.... do .

. . .do. .

W. J. Davis .

IT se of team .

Forage .

H. Halt h use .

...do .

C. L. Garland .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do .

.... do .

AV. H. Sanders

do .

... .do .

Stuart P. Johnson .

_ _ do .

. . . .do .

... .do .

G. T. Nash .

... .do .

T. G. McCarthy

AV. H. King. . .1 .

Field expenses .

AVilliam S. Post...

...do .

. . . .do .

_ do .

do .

. . . .do .

_ .do .

... .do .

W. T. Griswold .

. . . .do .

C. F. Wheeler .

... .do .

Thomas O’Toole .

.... do .

J. T. Mitchell .

... .do .

P. H. Cosgrove .

.... do .

J. W. Bott’s .

... .do .

_ do .

do .

_ do... ‘ . .

... .do .

C. C. Martin .

. . . .do .

_ do . .

J. F. Farmer .

R. C. McKinney .

. . . .do .

Jno. AV. Hays .

100

_ do .

101

102

do .

103

S. C. Gallup

104

105

.... do .

106

107

Ezra T. Hatch .

108

O. L. Houghton .

109

Gross, Blackwell & Co .

Subsistence .

110

William Malboeuf .

Supplies .

111

A. C. Schmidt .

112

113

A. Deeter .

114

_ do .

. do .

115

....do .

...do .

Date.

1891.

Jan. 9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
1.0
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
17
17
17
17
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19

20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
21
21
21
21
21
21
21

Amount.

$118.

41.

39.

27.
60.
69.

69.

50.
21.
75.

51.
24.

16.

77.

10.

21.

11.

30.

18.

21.

13.

8.
12.
73.
65.

35.
37.

36.
24.
61.

54.
60.
77.

29.

60.

11.

18.

19.

13.
29.

39.

20.

37.

28.
20.
26.

14.

19.
13.
22.
16.

55.
99.
35.

40.
88.

20.
20.
13.

70.
142.

16.

24.

233.

22.

20.

10.

35.

22.

72
08
70
00
38
15
75
10
25
35

25
00

26
80
06
68
95
00
50
07
00
19
75
65

19
29

20
50
50
60
60
00
00

29
87
70
35
06
03
00
50
08
50

95
00
00
80
25
93
37

69
72
25
25

96
96
75
50
55
00
18
20
22
75
95
00

70
00
40

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

193

Abstract of disbursements made by H. C. Bizer, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR V. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.
Jan. 23
24

116

$31.92
17. 42
16.12
38.70
20.62
269 06

117

_ _ do .

118

_ do .

119

.... do .

120

121

Services .

122

_ _ do .

72. 30
24. 83
50.00
50 00

123

F. H. Kelsey .

_ _ do .

124

125

S. S. Mitchell .

126

. . .do .

189 40

127

Forage .

30. 00

Feb. 10

128

183. 78

129

125. 10

130

24. 00

131

B. F. Buckner .

11. 29

132

... .do .

172. 20

133

89. 24

134

19. 50

135

14. 94

136

14. 51

137

R. R. Kelley ... .

10. 00

138

171. 20

139

59. 50

140

189. 40

141

_ do .

25. 00

Total .

6, 933. 43

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, Chief Disbursing Clerk, U. S.

Geological Survey, during April, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Apr. 6
6
10

14
14
16
16
16
16
16
16
17
17
17

8
9

DeLancey W. Gill .

Leonard A. White .

People’s Dispatch and Trans¬
fer Co.

Victoria Essex .

Mary C. Mahon .

T. W. Stanton .

Washington Gaslight Co .

J. W. Powell .

Marcus Baker .

Columbia Phonograph Co .

Charles D. Walcott .

A. H. Storer .

S. Ward Loper .

William P. Rust .

John M. Gurley .

Harriet Biddle .

International and Great North¬
ern Ry.

Denver and Rio Grande Ry. Co. .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co .

Burlington and Missouri Valley
R. R. in Nebraska.

Chicago and Alton R. R . . . .

Savannah, Florida and West¬
ern R. R.

William Grunow, jr .

National Press Intelligence Co. .

United States Express Co .

Charles C. Darwin .

W. H. Morrison .

Wash. B. Williams .

Robert Boyd . .

Emil Greiner .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co .

David Williams .

L. H. Schneider’s Son .

Edward J. Hannan .

George Ryneal, jr .

Albert L. Pitney .

Traveling expenses .

Services, March, 1891 .

Fr&ght charges and hauling .

Services, March 2 to 31, 1891 .

Services, March 2 to 14, 1891 .

Traveling expenses .

Laboratory supplies .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do .

Rent of graphophones, etc .

Traveling expenses .

Supplies for mineral resources .

Services, March, 1891 .

. . .do .

Services, March 1 to 18. 1891 .

Services, J anuary 1 to March 31, 1891 .
Transportation of assistant .

. . .do .

Transportation of property .

Transportation of assistants .

Laboratory supplies .

Newspaper clippings .

Freight charges .

Traveling expenses .

Publications .

Geologic supplies .

Supplies .

Laboratory supplies .

Transportation of assistants

Publications .

Supplies .

Supplies for illustrations

Supplies .

Paleontologic supplies .

12 GrEOL - 13

$13. 25
50. 00
7. 76

52. 00
24. 00
117.19
61.13
12. 18
12. 28
77.50
90. 78
9. 00
104. 00
65. 00
30. 00
30. 00
10. 70

19. 35
2. 37

44. 90

9. 40
27. 80

51.00
6. 80
399. 05

40.90
82. 70
35. 00
29. 70
10.00

48.70
5. 00

76. 44
55. 00
199. 07

12. 70

194

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. I). McChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

1891.
Apr. 17
17

18
20
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
23
23
23
23
23

24
24
24

28
28
28
28
28
28
28
28
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30

Voucher.

60
61
62

80
81
82

To whom paid.

Wyckoff, Seamans & Benedict..
Atchison, Topeka and Santa
F6 R. R.

Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri
Valley R. R

Annie E. Hendley .

D. Skutsch .

Hall & Sons .

Scientific Publishing Co .

James D. & E. S. Dana .

John C. Parker .

Cutter & Wood..-.. .

Charles Scribner's Sons .

J. W. Bonton .

Daniel Appleton & Co .

Baltimore and Ohio R. R. Co -

For what paid.

Supplies and repairs .

Transportation of assistants.

_ do .

Services, April 1 to 18, 1891 ....
Services, February 1 to 8, 1891 .

Laboratory material .

Publications .

_ do .

Supplies for Mineral Resources

Geologic supplies .

Publications .

- do .

. . .do .

Transportation of assistants . . .
Topographic supplies .

Unexcelled Paper Tube Co.

Eimer & Amend . Laboratory supplies.

E. E. Jackson & Co . Supplies .

Wash. B. Williams . Paleontologic supplies .

Richmond and Danville R. R.Co. Transportation of assistants .

E. J. Pullman . Illustration supplies .

M. G. Copeland & Co . Topographic field material .

Newman & Son . Repairing typewriter . . .

U. S. custom-house . , United States duties on instrument.

Fred. A. Schmidt . Supplies .

M. W. Beveridge . do.

Great Northern Ry. Co

Charles R. Keyes .

R. R. Bowker .

Charles Scribner’s Sons .

Emil Greiner .

Baltimore and Ohio R. R. Co.

Wash. B. Williams .

J. Henry Blake .

Samuel H. Scudder .

O. C. Marsh . do

F. Berger . do .

L. P. Bush . do .

C. C. Willard . Rent of office, April, 1891

H. C. Rizer . Services, April, 1891 .

Leonard A. White . ! - do .

Payroll of employes . do

Transportation of property .
Services, April 18 to 23, 1891

Publications .

. . .do .

Laboratory supplies .

Transportation of property .

Topographic supplies .

Services, April, 1891 .

...do .

..do.

_ do .

....do .
....do.

_ do .

.do.

Amount.

Total

$20. 55
12. 65

17. 42

30. 00
28. 50
24. 00
4. 00
7. 50
90. 00
21.45
118.92

1.50
6. 00

46. 65
27. 00
103. 57
112. 63
95. 00
275.55
180. 37
48.71
2. 0C
94. 00
33. 54
9.94
12.60
20.00

3.50
3.73
3. 00

32. 87
55. 00
148. 30
206. 00
329. 70
80.00
50.00
266. 66
181.30
50. 00
1, 293. 85
1, 265. 40
851. 20
754. 73
1,478.00
1,119.90
882. 40
362. 65

12, 784. 89

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

1891.
Apr. 10

People’s Dispatch and Transfer
Company.

U. S. Electric Lighting Co .

Bernhard Meiners .

United States Express Co . .

George Meier & Co .

Peter Adams Co .

J. E. Entwistle .

Robert Boyd .

L. H. Schneider’s Son .

George Meier & Co .

E. E. Jackson & Co .

Ernest Kiibel .

Fred. A. Schmidt .

M . W. Beveridge .

Robert Mayer & Co .

Pay roll of employes .

Total . .

Freight charges .

.30

$25. 00
11.25

Freight charges .

1.25

XlVigUlWUUgUO..

97 07

. _ . .do .

72. 00

. . . .do .

51. 50

. . . .do .

4. 43

3. 00

_ _ do .

3. 75

21. 00

31.25

107. 50

. . . .do .

. 68

3. 00

1,319. 71

1, 750. 69

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

195

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during April, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Salary .

Field expenses .

. do . ' .

.... do .

Services .

Salary .

Services .

Basil Duke .

_ do .

.... do .

C. F. Trill .

... .do .

_ do .

. . . .do . ^ . .

C. W. Goodlove .

Traveling expenses _

.... do .

_ do .

Stationery .

| . 20

W. A. Balch .

Services .

_ do .

A. M. Walker

_ do .

....do .

... .do .

J. M. Gibson .

Pasturage .

J. M. Fawbusli .

_ do .

H. E. Williams .

_ do .

C. E. Siebenthal .

_ _ do .

Pay roll, Rensbawe .

Pay roll, Gannett .

Hersey Munroe .

Field expenses .

... .do .

Pay roll .

Forage .

E. Root <fc Co .

Transportation .

Pound & Tison .

C. E. Siebenthal .

...do ...

H. E. Williams .

J. H. Hagerty .

Robert D. Cummin .

..do ..

R. B. Cameron .

_ _ do .

L. D. Brent .

. . . do .

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

.do .

C. W. Goodlove .

..do .

H. L. Baldwin, jr .

Total .

Date.

1891.

Apr. 16
21
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
29

29
28
28
21
21
18
18
18
18
23
23
23
23
23
23

30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30

Amount.

$1.

63.

498.

69.

89.

74.

54.

60.

74.

72.

32.

69.
131.

38.

53.

16.

45.

32.

50.

60.

40,

30,

79.

35.

70.
65.
65,

606.

608.

232.

225.

543.

69.
127.

45.

65,

70.
65.
70.

131.

74,

69.

74,

148.

74.

82.

20
40
20
20
00
20
00
00
20
90
25
25
25
60
00
00
00
00
00
00
95
00
00
00
00
00
80
80
90
10
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
90
20
20
20
30
20
75

9, 407. 29

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during April, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Apr. 3
3

4
4
4
7
9
9
9

14 ;

10
11
12

James G. Bowen .

W. P. Jenney .

N. H. Dartou .

Frank Leverett .

Benjamin C. Palmer . . .

A. P. Baker .

James H. Wilson .

Robert D. Coggesliall . .

J. S. Diller .

Benjamin French & Co

T. Nelson Dale .

Bent & Co .

J. F. Maston .

George H. Eldridge . . .

- do .

W. S. Bayley .

Edmund Jiissen .

George H. Williams _

Forage, etc .

Supplies .

Traveling expenses .

Services, March, 1891 .

. . . .do .

Rent of rooms .

Services . , . . .

Supplies .

Traveling expenses .

Supplies .

- do . * .

...do .

Pasturage .

Supplies .

Traveling expenses .

- do .

. . . .do .

Services, February 1 to March 31, 1891

$29. 02
115.98
66. 64
130. 00
25. 00
43. 75
6.00
8.50
26. 52
93. 72
9. 52
10. 00

45. 00
5. 50

140. 25

46. 65
53.90
85.00

196

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR XL S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.
Apr. 16
17
17

Eield expenses .

$16. 19
47. 25

W. H. Dali

Services, March, 1891 .

28. 50

4. 59

_ _ do .

57. 91

Services, August 2 to December 10,
1890.

Traveling expenses .

214. 52

103. 60

94 25

Field expenses .

155. 43

60. 00

J. E. Wolff .

Services, February, 1891 .

77. 78

Services, March, 1891 .

97. 22

W. P. Jeimey .

Services, April, 1891 .

181. 30

30. 00

C. Willard Hayes .

_ do .

115. 40

_ do .

67. 73

. .do .

115. 40

148. 30

... do .

131. 90

H. W. Turner .

...do .

131. 90

197. 80

R. D. Salisbury .

Services. September 10, 1890, to
April 30, 1891.

Services, April, 1891 .

155. 00

1, 467. 05

_ _ do .

.... do .

1, 776. 06
190. 93

H. W. Turner .

Traveling expenses .

50. 25

J. E. Wolff .

38. 92

S. H. Davis .

24. 00

P. J. Little hale .

53.25

10. 00

C. L. Whittle .

Services, April, 1891 .

100. 00

S. Shaler .

260. 00

R. E. Dodge .

. . . .do .

30. 00

J. B. Wooil worth .

50. 00

329. 70

C. R. Van Hise .

. . . .do .

329. 70

George E. Luther .

_ do .

98. 90

Total . . .

7. 981. 66

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geolog¬
ical Survey, during April, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Apr. 6

Elwood Hofer .

Services as herder .

$77. 14

Pay roll of employes .

Services, April, 1891 .

725. 20

Total .

802. 34

Abstract of disbursements made by James W. Spencer, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geo¬
logical Survey, during April, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Apr. 8

Charles Swanson .

Transportation .

Frank Tweedy .

William Ivronig .

Forage .

William H. Otis .

Field expenses .

Joseph Jacobs .

Roberts & Co .

... .do . .

Rockwell Brothers .

Jeremiah Ahem .

Willard D. Johnson .

...do .

$10. 83
7. 50
59.85
89.50
18.55

61.29

13. 30
68. 50
40. 00
15. 00
10. 00

5ICHESNEY.]

HEADS OF DIVISIONS

197

Abstract of disbursements made by James IF. Spencer, etc. — -Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR V. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.
Apr. 13
13

A. P. Davis .

Field expenses .

$60. 00
13 50

_ do .

E. T. Perkins, jr .

. . . .do .

84.50
240. 00
147 50

H. W. Koen .

Forage .

Samuel McDowell .

. . . .do . .

W. T. Griswold .

119. 50
150. 00
2. 35
2. 00
22. 50
22. 30
24.52
12. 00
29 75

H. W. Koen .

Western Union Telegraph Co. . .

W. H. Hyde .

J. W. Dobbins .

Fred A. Schmidt .

8. 00
82 40

Amos Scott .

....do . .

60. 00

Charles W. Howell .

... .do .

' 60. 00

William H. Otis .

_ .do .

50. 00

S. S. Mitchell .

_ do .

50. 00

J. F. Mitchell .

. . . .do .

30. 00

J. M. Dikeman . . .

_ _ do .

60. 00

Frank Tweedv .

.... do .

148. 30

_ do .

21.95
79 80

T. M. Bannon .

. . . .do .

79. 80

5 00

J. W. Dobbins .

26. 70

30. 00

5. 04

75. 77

George L. Robinson .

.... do .

55. 00

Tlieod. Heyck .

45. 00

Frank Fuqua .

. . . .doT .

18. 00

35. 75

Pay roll, Thompson .

4, 542. 25

. . . .do . . ’ .

629. 50

W. T. Griswold .

164. 80

20. 00

Willard D. Johnson .

. . . .do .

10. 00

Total .

7, 717. 80

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, chief disbursing clerk, U. S. Geo¬
logical Survey, during May, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
May 2

$128. 00
9. 35

Supplies .

George W. Knox .

Freight charges and hauling .

63.44

67. 64
39 06

William 1). Clark & Co .

_ _ do .

3.23
9. 68
1.75

_ do .

Browning &. Middleton .

_ do .

Supplies .

14. 53

J. Baumgarten &. Son .

Topographic supplies .

1. 75

Charles R. Keyes .

50 drawings .

125. 00

Services, April, 1891 .

52. 00

S. Ward Loper .

_ do .

104. 00

Topographic supplies .

52. 38

Jacksonville, St. Augustine and

Transportation of assistants .

44. 30

Halifax River R. K. Co.

6.04

Topographic supplies .

49. 50

Prosch Manufacturing Co .

Repairs .

1.50

1.25

12. 09

Kansas City, Fort Scott and

Transportation of assistant .

9. 65

Memphis R. R.

35.25

George Rvneal, jr .

Topographic supplies .

6. 00

William P. Rust .

Services, April, 1891 .

65. 00

198

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. McChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

1891.

May 11

1(5

To whom paid.

James W. Queen & Co .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co .

W. H. Morrison .

W. D. Doremus .

John C. Parker .

Wyckoff. Seamans & Benedict . .

J. S. Topiiam .

E. J. Pullman .

Royce & Marean .

Baltimore and Ohio R. R. Co -

Richards & Co (limited) .

Ira Sayles .

R. R. Bowker . .

Fremont, Elkliorn and Missouri
Valley R. R.

Samuel Springmann .

Franklin R. Carpenter .

Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri
Valley R. R.

Baltimore and Ohio R. R. Co -

R. C. Jones . |

W. H. Lowdemiilk .

Frances B. Johnston .

E. J. Pullman .

Melville Lindsay .

W. & L. E. Gurley .

Wliitall Tatum & Co .

Chicago, Rock Island and Pa¬
cific R. R.

Carson and Colorado R. R. Co. . .
Virginia and Truckee R. R. Co. .

Pennsylvania R. R. Co . '

Wilmington and Weldon R. R. .

Williams, Browne & Earle .

Samuel H. Scudder .

J . Henry Blake .

Ira Sayles .

O. C. Marsh .

T. A. Bostwick .

L. P. Bush .

F. Berger .

Edward W. Parker .

Clias. G. Stott & Co .

. . . .do .

C.C. Willard .

Leonard A. White .

Pay roll of employes .

_ do .

....do .

_ do .

. . . do .

....do .

_ do .

For what paid.

Amount.

Laboratory supplies .

Transportation of property .

Publications .

Laboratory supplies .

Topographic supplies .

_ do’ .

— do .

Supplies for illustrations . . .

Geologic supplies .

Transportation of assistant

Laboratory supplies .

Traveling expenses .

Publications .

Transportation of property

$6. 12
1.85
43.80
2. 50
6.00
2. 50
18. 80
60. 83
3.95
10. 00

4. 40
24. 64

5. 00
49. 35

Freight charges and hauling.

Services, April 14-30, 1891 _

Freight .

- do .

Publications .

_ do .

Paleontologic supplies .

Supplies for illustrations .

Geologic supplies .

3 Philadelphia rods .

Laboratory material .

Transportation of assistants .

_ do .

- do .

Geologic supplies .

Services, May, 1891 .

_ do .

- do .

Services, April and May, 1891

Services, May, 1891 . . .

_ do .

Services, May 16-31, 1891 .

Topographic supplies .

Library supplies .

Rent of office rooms .

Services, May, 1891 .

- do .

....do .

- do .

....do .

- do .

....do .

_ do .

22. 70
60. 00
67. 60

6. 13
6.00
295. 10
77. 30
3.12
2. 10
60.00
18. 20
25. 00

60.00
2.75
66. 05
9.45
5.00
213. 00
153. 40
119. 20
340. 60
167. 60
50. 00
80. 00
87.91
41.44
53. 79
266. 66
50.09
1,337.30
1, 299. 13
877. 60

762. 20
1, 414. 80
1, 106. 20

910. 20
374. 70

Total

11, 634. 16

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

1891.
May 8
8
8
11
11
12
13

14
20
31

8
9

William D. Clark & Co . . .

J. Baumgarten & Son .

George W. Knox .

D. McMenamin .

William H. Arnetli .

George Meier & Co . .

IT. S. Electric Lighting Co

J. S. Topham . . .

Irwin N. Megargee .

Henry Lindenmeyer .

Pay roll ot employes .

Engraver's supplies .

Rubber stamp .

Freight charges and hauling .

Engraver’s supplies .

.. .ao .

. . do .

Use of 4 H. P. current (April, 1891) .

Engraver’s supplies .

_ do .

. . .do .

Services, May, 1891 .

$7. 50
5. 00
10.24
5. 92
7. 00
18. 50
25. 00
3.25
466. 38
198. 00
1, 365. 00

Total

117. 79

.a CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

199

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during May, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

1881.
May 31

* 27

To whom paid.

For wlmt paid.

W. R. Atkinson . . . .

- do .

Lincoln Martin

A.E. Wilson .

H. M. Wilson .

L. C. Fletcher .

Glenn S. Smith . . .

_ do .

Hersey Mnnroe _

Charles T. Trask. .
W. E. Lackland . . .
Hersey M unroe —

L. C. Fletcher .

J. L. Bridwell .

- do .

Van H. Manning. .
li. Peyton Legare .

S. S. Gannett .

L. C. Fletcher .

R. B. Cameron _

Duncan Hannegan

L. C. Woodbury _

George Landry . . .
H. L. Baldwin, jr. .

W. T. Quillin .

James U. Goode. . .

Pay roll (in part) .

George T. Hawkins .

... .do .

J. R. Cam .

Ed. Gandin .

W. R. Atkinson .

J. J. Mason .

John Boler .

Jules Leforte .

L. C. Woodbury .

J. H. Jennings .

| G.E. Hyde .

j W. Cooper Talley .

I George T. Hawkins .

- do' .

Pay roll .

_ do .

... .do .

L. C. Woodbury .

Frank Sutton. .

Fianlc Sutton (in part) .

Ewing Speed .

- do .

D. C. Harrison .

- do .

G. E. Hyde .

Pay roll .

H. 'B. Blair .

Pay roll (in part) .

William Kramer .

F. Howard Seeley .

Richmond and DanvilleR. R

Field expenses, April .

Services, April, 1891 .

Field expenses, May, 1891 .

...do .

. . .do .

Field expenses, April, 1891 .

Traveling expenses, April, 1891. . . .

Traveling expenses, May, 1891 .

Forage, etc .

Services, May, 1891 .

Field expenses, April and May .

Field expenses, May .

_ do .

Traveling expenses, May .

_ do . .

. . .do .

Field expenses, May . .

. . .do .

Traveling expenses, March to May.

_ do .

Services, April .

. . .do . . .

Field expenses, April .

Traveling expenses, April .

Services, April .

Traveling expenses, April .

Salaries, April .

Traveling expenses, April .

Field expenses, April and May _

Services, April .

_ do .

Traveling expenses, April .

Services, April .

Traveling expenses, May .

Services, April . . .

Traveling expenses, April .

Traveling expenses, May .

_ do .

Services, May .

Field expenses, May .

Traveling expenses, A iJi'il and May.

Salaries, May .

— do .

_ do .

Services, May .

— do .

Field expenses, May .

Services, May .

Traveling expenses, May .

— do . .

Services, May .

_ do .

Salaries, May .

Services, May .

Salaries, May .

Services, May .

— do . . .

Transportation .

Total

Amount.

$182. 20
98. 90

37. 30

81.15
46. 45

357. 71

29. 25
18.44

75. 85
119. 20

71.60
251. 26
Ills. 15
114. 36

53. 60

39. 25

38. 25
62. 28
53.83
53. 25

53.60
50.00

40. 00
155. 70

12.15
50. 00

29. 85
169. 23

19. 00
128. 67

20. 00
9.00
8. 35

50. 00
34.80

30. 00
24. 90

20. 85

16.94

22. 86

90. 85

52. 95
695. 40

2, 682. 60
1, 355. 80
16. 00
136. 20
60.00
50. 00
7.72

81.85
119. 20
102. 20
493. 63
136. 20
117. 74
102. 20

76. 60
23. 25

9, 238. 57

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during May, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
May 4

Benjamin G. Palmer .

A. P. Baker .

Lawrence C. Johnson .

....do .

W. Lindgren .

W. O. Rew .

Services, April, 1891 .

Rent of rooms, April, 1891 .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do .

Field expenses . .

Hire of steam launch .

$25. 00
43.75
60. 28
80.45
67.03
232. 50

l’e

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

ract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis,

etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

J. E. Wolff .

Frank Leverett .

Ben. K. Emerson .

J. T. Master .

W arren Upliam .

_ do .

George H. Eldridge .

_ do .

- do .

James G. Bowen .

G.K. Gilbert .

Goldberg, Bowen & Co .

Pay roll of employes .

Charles J. Moore.' .

M. R. Campbell .

_ do . .

G. C. Temple .

Bailey Willis .

Raphael Pumpelly .

Beckham & Corum . .

George H. Williams .

Bavid White .

Gilbert B. Harris .

J. E. Wolff .

W. P. Jenney .

_ do .

Richard Bliss .

W. N. Merriam . . .

W. S. Bayley .

G. F. Becker .

_ do . . .

George M. Bockray .

New York and Boston Bispatch
Express Co.

George E. Luther .

Mary A. Lloyd .

T. Nelson Bale .

I. C. White .

_ do .

F. H. Newell .

Eugene Bietzgen & Co .

Lawrence C. Johnson .

C. M. Harlan .

C. R.Van Hise .

Raphael Pumpelly .

Arthur Keith .

Parker & Star bird .

G. P. Putnam’s Sous .

C. C. Hayes .

E. B. Richardson . . .

George H. Eldridge .

- do .

Edmund Jiissen .

J. B. Woodworth .

R. E. Bodge .

W. A. Croffut .

Edmund Jiissen .

George H. Eldridge .

W. Lingren .

H. W. Turner .

T. Nelson Bale .

C. L. Whittle .

N. S. Shaler .

W. R. Herbert .

Benjamin French & Co .

W. S. Bayley .

W. A. Hallo'ck .

Pay roll of employ6s .

- do .

Raphael Pumpelly .

J. S. Biller . '. .

W. S. Hummell .

Services, April, 1891 .

_ do .

...do .

Forage .

Services, March, 1891 .

Services, April, 1891 .

Traveling expenses .

Supplies, etc .

Field expenses .

Hire and care of public animal .

Traveling expenses .

Supplies . .

Services. April, 1891 .

Services, February 1 to April 15. 1891

Subsistence .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do .

Supplies .

Forage, etc .

Services, April, 1891 .

Traveling expenses .

— do .

_ do .

...do .

Supplies . .

Photographic supplies . .

Bibliographic work . .

Services, April, 1891 .

- do .

Traveling expenses .

Field expenses .

Supplies .

Expressage .

Traveling expenses .

Services .

Supplies .

Traveling expenses .

Services .

Traveling expenses .

Supplies .

Traveling expenses .

Pasturage . .

Traveling expenses .

_ do .

Supplies .

Camera, etc . .

Specimen bags .

Pasturage, etc . .

Stabling, etc .

Grabbing tongs .

Traveling expenses .

. . .do . .

Services, May, 1891 .

_ do . .

...do . .

_ do . .

- do .

- do . .

Typewriter .

Material .

Traveling expenses .

- do .

Services, May, 1891 .

_ do . .

— do .

- do . .

Traveling expenses .

- do . .

Total

M'CHESNEY.] the HEADS OF DIVISIONS. 201

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geological

Survey, during May, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.

May 31

Pay roll of employes .

Services, May, 1891 .

$749. 60

Abstract of disbursements made by Janies W. Spencer, special disbursing agent, U. S. Geologi¬
cal Survey, during May, 1891.

APPROPRIATION EOR U. $. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

100

101

102

103

104

105

106

107

108

109

110

111

112

113

114

115

116

117

James S. Topham .

C. Becker .

Pay roll, Jacobs .

Joseph Jacobs .

Roberts & Co .

Fred A. Schmidt .

C. E. Crawford .

C. H. Fitch .

A. P. Davis .

C. D. Baldwin .

M. Strain .

B. F. Acuff & Co .

_ do .

Thomas L. Denny .

Edward Biby .

Coxhead & Harr el .

_ do .

! _ do .

V anorsdale & Everett .

Oppenlander & Rehm .

John M. Killau & Co .

S. C. Gallup .

G. T. Nash .

C. C. Huddleston -

W. T. Griswold .

William P. Trowbridge, jr
J. W. Dobbins .

T. M. Bannon .

E. T. Perkins,, ir .

Wayson & Harbin .

Kruffel & Esser Co .

John Chatillon & Sons. . . .
Frank Tweedy .

I - do .

Fred A. Schmidt .

Coffin & Seaton .

P. V. S. Bartlett .

Fred A. Schmidt .

J. W. Dobbins .

- do .

Wurdeman & Co .

R.H. McKee .

B. F. Acuff & Co .

Decker & Co .

Vanorsdale & Everett ....
Stebbins Mercantile Co. . .

Frank Tweedy .

E. J. Owenhouse .

W. & L. E. Gurley .

J. B. Lippincott .

' E. T. Perkins, jr .

15. F. Acuff & Co .

Stuart P. Johnson .

T. E. Grafton .

L. B. Kendall .

W. &. L. E. Gurley .

R. U. Goode .

Charles F. Urquhart .

H. S. Wallace .

T. M. Bannon .

J. B. Hamilton .

Wayson & Harbin .

W. T. Griswold .

S. C. Gallup .

Fred L. Leonard .

M. Strain .

Supplies .

_ do .

Services, April .

Field expenses .

Subsistence .

Paper .

Labor .

Field expenses .

_ do .

Field supplies .

...do .

- do .

Subsistence .

Services .

....do .

Field expenses .

Storage .

Field expenses .

Subsistence .

_ do .

Supplies .

_ do .

Repairs .

Field supplies .

Field expenses .

- do .

...do .

Services, April .

Traveling expenses

Field supplies .

Instruments .

- do .

Traveling expenses

Field expenses .

Paper .

Forage .

Traveling expenses

Paper .

Field expenses .

_ do .

Instruments .

Traveling expenses

Subsistence .

- do .

_ do .

... do .

Field expenses .

Storage .

Instruments .

Traveling expenses

Field expenses .

Forage .

Traveling expenses

— do .

_ do .

Instruments .

Traveling expenses

_ do .

...do .

Forage .

Supplies .

Field expenses .

Field supplies .

...do .

— do .

$5. 00
14.00
100.00
09. 59
22. 00
15. 00
135. 00

13. 50
50. 00
11.95

4. 95
45.24
55. 11
10. 15
40. 00
12. 25

14. 00
45. 50
19. 80
17. 00

0. 00
105. 09
2.00
74. 50
22. 00

74. 50
9. 90

75. 00
45. 45

0.75
30. 00
9. 75
98. 35
07.40
3.90
37. 25
44. 00

35. 40
29. 10

7.35

5. 25
42. 25
22.05
12. 90

10.40
103. 43
129. 14

10. 00
104. 00
51.50
120. 93
10. 84
19. 50
19. 50
41.00
84. 00
65. 50
22. 75
22. 75
130. 40
5. 75
2. 70
29. 79
54. 50
32. 35
4. 02

202

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS RY

Abstract of disbursements made by . Tames II'. Spencer, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.

May 23
23
23
23
23
23
23

118

119

120
121
122

123

124

125

126

Subsistence .

$37. 22

_ _ do .

22. 75

... .do .

24. 48

W. H. Hyde .

Repairs .

13.50

15. 03

41. 00

63. 12

21.25

_ do .

21.25

127

Services, May .

85. 20

128

129

C. H. Fitch .

.... do .

18. 75

130

J. B. Lippincott .

Services, May .

119. 20

131

... .do . .

136.20

132

133

. . . .do .

29. 25

134

50. 00

135

P. V. S. Bartlett .

. . . .do . .

85. 20

136

J. M. Dikeman .

... .do .

60. 00

137

387. 19

138

W. J. Lloyd .

17. 50

139

66. 55

140

E. McL. Long .

. . . .do .

74. 20

141

Payroll. Thompson .

Services, May .

3, 976. 30

142

J ames W. Spencer .

. . . .do . .

' 136. 20

Total .

8, 286. 17

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. I). McChesney, chief disbursing clerk, U. S.

Geological Survey, during June, 1S91.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.

Sophie C. Harrison .

$22. 00
50. 00
250. 35

George Ryneal, jr .

Supplies . , .

Z. D. Gilman .

... .do .

617. 18

Adams Express Company .

Freight charges .

426. 90

John ( ). Parker .

Geologic supplies .

1. 00

Melville Lindsay .

3. 60

53. 14

51. 95

William D. Clark & Co .

39. 06

Northern Pacific R. R. Co .

70. 00

Central Vermont R. R. Co .

.... do .

19. 30

Chesapeake and Ohio R. R. Co . .

_ do .

109. 75

The Eastman Company .

7. 27

Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul

Transportation of property .

1.51

R. R.

Denver and Rio Grande R. R. Co.

Transportation of assistants .

34. 30

John M. Gurley .

50. 00

S. H. Zahn & Co .

1. 00

Norman W. Henley <fe Co .

.... do .

48. 34

Baltimore and Ohio R. R. Co _

Transportation of assistants .

557. 55

Hume & Co .

. 60

J. Baumgarten & Son .

. 90

Charles H. Elliott .

Services, December 26, 1890 to Jan-

26.00

W. D. Castle .

uary 26, 1891.

6. 25

L. H. Schneider’s Son .

63.56

Robert Beall .

Publications .

49. 00

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe

Transportation of assistant .

26. 80

R.R.

William P. Rust .

78. 00

George H. Mclveehan .

7. 74

11.65

31-

H. S. Williams .

Services, April 1 to May 15, 1891 ....

185.41

Henry J. Green .

Geologic and topographic supplies .

163.90

E. R. Ivlippart .

18. 75

Chicago, St. Paul and Kansas

Transportation of assistant .

14. 20

City R. R.

Savannah, Florida and Western

- do .

22.65

R. R.

M'CHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

203

Abstract of disbursements made by Jno. D. HcChesney, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR IT. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

1891.

June 19

To whom paid.

Fremont, Elkliorn and Missouri
Valley R. R.

_ do . .

J. B. Hammond .

Atlantic and Pacific R. R. Co

Pennsylvania R. R. Co .

Northern Pacific R. R. Co .

William Gruuow .

Andrew Renz .

Herbert J . Browne .

E. J. Pullman . .

George W. Knox .

James S. Topliam .

Fred. A. Schmidt .

E. He Pay .

Missouri Pacific Ry. Co .

George H. Rigby. .

Emil Greiner .

Melville Lindsay .

People’s Dispatch and Transfer

Co.

John C. Parker .

Ira Sayles .

Harriet Biddle .

J. Henry Blake .

Samuel H. Scudder .

- do .

O. C. Marsh .

T. A. Bostwiek .

C. A. White .

F. H. Newell .

Leonard A. White .

Pay roll of employes .

_ do . .' .

_ do .

... .do .

... do .

. . . .do .

- do . .’ .

T. W. Stanton .

C. C. Willard .

Washington Gaslight Co .

Sophie C. Harrison .

Victoria Essex .

For what paid. Amount.

Transportation of property

$34. 31

. . .do .

Geologic supplies .

Transportation of property. . .
Transportation of assistants. .

.. .do .

Laboratory material .

Geologic hammers and repairs

Publications . .

Geologic supplies .

Freight charges and hauling .

Geologic supplies .

Illustration supplies .

Supplies . .

Transportation of assistants .

Publications . .

Laboratory supplies .

— do .

Freight charges and hauling .

41.93
118. 00
74. 43
191. 65
75. 05
35.00
15. 75
110. 00
231. 10
4. 79
10. 00

3. 00

4. 00
24.50
12. 00

2. 25
8. 12
3. 94

Supplies for mineral resources .

Services, June, 1891 .

Services, April 1 to June 30, 1891 . . .

Services, June, 1891 .

....do .

Traveling expenses . .

Services, J une, 1891 .

_ do .

- do .

Services, May 31 to June 30, 1891 . . .

Services, June, 1891 .

_ do . .

- do . . .

- do .

....do .

- do .

- do . .

_ do .

Rent of offices, June, 1891 .

Laboratory supplies .

Services, June, 1891 .

_ do .

3. 03

115. 40
30. 00

148. 30
206. 00
12. 85
329. 70
82.40
222. 50
170. 29
50. 00
906. 55
1, 303. 73
1, 577. 60
1,290. 20
1, 071. 90

882. 40
527. 45

82. 40
266. 66
48.75
51.00
52.00*

Total

13, 520. 54

APPROPRIATION FOR GEOLOGICAL MAPS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1891.

1891.
June 8
8
8
8
8
9
10

8
9

Adams Express Co .

Z. D. Gilman .

William I). Clark & Co .

Mt. Hollv Paper Co .

Milton Bradley Company .

George S. Harris & Sons .

United States Electric Light¬
ing Co.

L. H. Schneider’s Son .

Bureau Engraving and Printing

Edward J. Hannan .

George W. Knox .

The John Ryan Company .

Pay roll of employes . . .

Freight charges .

Engraver’s supplies .

— do . . .

— do .

Engraving maps .

Use of 4 horse power current (May,
1891).

Engraver’s supplies .

_ do .

-do . -. .

Freight charges and hauling .

Supplies .

Service. J une, 1891 .

$6. 30
33. 30
51.21
57. 00
12.15
1, 080. 00
25. 00

2. 75
1.00
7.12
7.81
35. 00
1, 330. 00

Total

2, 648. 64

204 ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by Anton Karl, special disbursing agent U. S. Geological

Survey, during June, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR IT. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.

June 3

May 31
' 29
29
31
31
31
29
31

June 10
10

Field expenses, May .

$60. 32
71. 60

Services, Mav .

_ _ do .

50. 00

_ do .

170. 40

C, F Trill

_ _ do .

104. 00

.... do .

100. 00

_ do .

71.60

_ _ do .

30. 96

76. 60

Traveling expenses, May .

13. 87

Field expenses, May .

97. 35

Pay-roll

Salaries, May .

236. 20

Field expenses, May .

29. 90

. . . .do .

Traveling expenses, May and June.
Services, May .

64.97

102. 20

Field expenses, June .

8.25

Services for Mav .

105. 00

. T V

30. 00

1, 423. 22

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, special disbursing agent U. S. Geological

Survey, during June, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Eugene A. Smith .

C. W. Hall .

W. S. Bayley .

P. M. Jones .

George E. Luther .

IV. N. Merriain .

Frank Leverett .

C. R. Van Hise .

J. M. Safford .

_ do .

T. Nelson Dale .

John Gallaher .

William D. Hiestand .

C. W. Hall .

J ames G. Bowen .

F. C. Boyce .

W. T. Turner .

W. Young .

Main & Winchester .

Goldberg, Bowen & Co .

W. Lindgren . . .

M. R. Campbell .

Benjamin G. Palmer .

C. L. Whittle .

A. P. Baker .

George A. Lake .

S. H. Davis .

W.P. Jenney .

W. S. Norwood .

P.M. Jones .

C. E. Kloeber .

Warren Upliam .

. R. I). Salisbury .

J. E. Wolff .

Thomas S. Kinsey . .

Raphael Pumpelty. . .

Keuffel & Esser. . .

New England Phonograph Co

Charles Lonch .

J. E. Wolff .

H. W. Turner .

S. Ward Loper .

_ do .

Gilbert van Ingen .

_ do .

i . . . .do .

i Lawrence C. Johnson .

Collecting for report .

Services, J anuary 1 to April 30, 1891 .

Services, May, 1891 .

Services, April, 1891 .

Services, May, 1891 .

. . .do . . .

- do .

. . .do .

Services, April, 1891 .

Traveling expenses .

_ do. . .

Tents .

Material .

Field expenses .

Hire of transportation .

Services, April 20 to May 31, 1891. . .

- do .

. . .do .

Supplies .

- do .

Field expenses .

— do .

Services, May, 1891 .

Traveling expenses .

Rent of rooms .

Field material .

Pasturage .

Services, May, 1891 .

Services, February 16 to May 31, 1891 .

Traveling expenses . T .

Services, May 1 to June 1, 1891 .

Services, May, 1891 .

Services, April and May. 1891 .

Services, May, 1891 .

Services . . .

Field expenses .

Supplies .

- do .

_ do .

Traveling expenses .

- do .

Services, May, 1891 .

Services, January, 1891 .

Freight charges . .

Traveling expenses .

- do .

$300. 00
45. 00
76.25
5.81
102. 20
30. 00
130. 00
340. 60
14. 82
3. 66

37. 05
32. 50

22.50
28.90
67.70
86. 66
53. 33
53. 33

8. 75
43. 60
51.95
74.99
25. 00
146. 05
43. 75
12. 25
3.00
187. 40
207. 86
1.70

38. 00
102. 20
160. 00
118. 68

84. 50
15. 31

3.05
42. 00
344. 73
31.98
66. 00
67.24
75. 00
75. 00
•2. 25
119. 85
112.49

ITCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

205

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR V. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1891.

G. K. Gilbert .

$25. 70
166. 25
56. 83
119 20

W. P. Jenney .

. . . .do _ "I .

. . . .do .

C. Willard Hayes .

Services, May, 1891 .

1. M. X. South wick .

Rent of stoves .

8.00
3. 45
29. 31
15 00

United States Express Co .

Expressage .

I. Steininger <fe Co .

Field supplies .

F. B. Furtnsh .

Field cases .

Rap h ael P urn pelly .

Field supplies .

18 28

Services" February 1 to 25, 1891 ....

66 96

W. H. Hobbs.

100 00

Ren. X. Emerson .

. . . .do .

100. 00

George H. Williams .

. . . .do .

125. 00

30. 95

Lawrence C. Johnson .

Services, May, 1891 .

119. 20

24. 00

F. Kroedel .

50. 00

7. 00

. . . .do .

Traveling expenses .

9. 20

H. W. Turner .

Field expenses .

53. 55

24. 60

... .do .

Services, June 1 to 15, 1891 .

75. 00

T. Nelson Dale .

Traveling expenses .

43. 57

Collecting .

48. 35

35. 00

37.94

c. L. Whittle .

Field expenses . .» .

172. 68

76.45

. . . .do .

... .do .

63.42

L. G. Westgate .

12. 90

18. 70

255. 00

. . . .do .

37. 60

... .do .

Pasturage .

112. 60

C. M. Harlan .

Forage .

13. 50

38. 80

34. 61

J. F. Masten . .

14. 00

82. 37

.... do .

148. 31

_ do .

131. 63

..do .

43. 20

48. 45

_ _ do .

95. 20

. . . .do .

2. 00

_ _ do .

1. 50

. . . .do .

Services, May, 1891 .

1. 60

9. 89

50. 00

260. 00

46. 98

100

131.90

101

... .do .

131. 90

102

W. A. Holmes .

45. 00

103

. . . .do .

45. 00

104

T. Nelson Dale. . .

...do .

148. 30

105

W. T. Turner .

.... do .

40. 00

106

50. 00

107

_ do .

115. 40

108

C. Willard Haves .

_ do..

115. 40

109

_ do .

197. 80

110

A. C.Peale .

. . .do .

164. 80

111

. . . .do .

329. 70

112

329. 70

113

W. H. Hyatt .

12. 00

114

110. 72

115

J. D. Bohn & Co .

28. 90

116

63.00

117

T. Nelson Dale

31.41

118

W. J. McGee .

.... do .

304. 75

119

47.37

120

New York and Boston Despatch
Express Co.

8. 25

121

122

75. 00

123

... .do .

16. 00

124

26. 00

125

W. P. Recfwoo'd .

10. 80

206

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by C. D. Davis, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY — Continued.

Date.

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

Amount.

1890.

126

$18. 00
98. 90

127

George E. Luther .

_ do .

128

.... do .

25. 00

129

W. Young .

. . .do .

40. 00

130

F. C. Boyce .

_ do .

'65. 00

131

George 11. Shields, jr .

_ do .

132

W. A. Crofi'ut .

_ do .

247. 25

133

G. F. Becker .

_ do . . .

329. 70

134

I. C. Russell .

_ do .

197. 80

135

.... do .

197. 80

136

_ _ do .

576. 95

137

_ _ do .

_ do .

1, 687. 85

138

_ do .

195. 57

139

J. E. Wolff.

.. do .

148. 30

140

C. L. Whittle .

_ do .

100. 00

141

50. 00

142

20. 00

143

M. M. J. Vea .

34.67

144

Collier Cobb .

50. 00

145

18. 33

146

54. 15

147

J. E. Wolff' .

66. 37

148

L. G. Westgate .

_ do .

56.84

149

C. L. Whittle, .

_ do .

24. 65

150

M. M. J. Vea -

...do .

13. 25

Total . .

13, 886. 66

Abstract of disbursements made by Arnold Hague, special disbursing agent, TJ. S. Geo¬
logical Survey, during June, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR TJ. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
June 30

$30. 00
135. 00

T. Woody .

Pasturage .

Salaries, June, 1891 .

725. 20

890. 20

Abstract of disbursements made by James W. Spencer, special disbursing agent, XJ. S.

Geological Survey, during June, 1891.

APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

1891.
Jnne 1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1

143

144

Pay roll, Holman .

145

Paul Holman .

146

_ _ do .

147

A. E. Dunnington .

_ do .

148

W. T. Griswold .

. . . .do .

149

. . . .do .

Pasturage .

150

151

Robert J. Breckenridge .

.do...’. .

152

153

James T. Storrs .

154

Pay roll, Gove .

155

Pay roll, McKee .

156

Payroll, Gordon .

.do .

157

Payroll, Wallace .

..do .

158

Payroll, Griswold .

159

A. A. Rockwell .

160

Rockwell Bros .

161

Stuart P. Johnson .

162

Samuel R. Sprecher .

163

164

H. H. Chumiea .

165

Frank E. Gove .

166

Perry Fuller .

_ do .

$71.60
57.42
18. 25
32. 55
67.55
64. 10
62. 20
129. 66
50. 00
85. 20
11.00
156. 92
450. 80
151.42
135. 94
312. 33
29. 68

20. 77
15. 00

21.77
107. 00

22. 50
45. 50
19. 75

1TCHESNEY.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

207

Abstract of disbursements made by James IF. Spencer, etc. — Continued.
APPROPRIATION FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

1890.

June 3

4
4
4

5
5
5
5
5
5

6
6
6
6
6
6
0
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9

Voucher.

To whom paid.

For what paid.

167

168

169

R. H. Chapman .

_ _ do .

170

Morris Bien .

_ _ do .

171

TV. B. Corse .

.... do .

172

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

. . .do _

173

George O. Glavis, jr .

174

R. H. Chapman .

. . . .do .

175

R. C. McKinney .

176

177

C. C. Bassett .

do .

178

Alex. C. Barclay .

179

180

J. F. Mitchell .

181

182

D. H. Sager .

183

Pat Cosgrove .

184

J. TV. Bobbins .

185

H. H. Hackett .

186

W. F. Coxhead .

. . .do .

187

T. M. Bannon .

.... do .

188

William S. Post .

_ do .

189

Pay roll, Fuller .

190

191

Pay roll, Trowbridge .

_ do .

192

Pay roll, Tweedy .

. . .do .

193

194

E. M. Douglas .

_ _ do .

195

Morris Bien .

_ do .

196

T. E. Grafton .

...do .

197

198

... .do .

_ _ do .

199

A. F. Dunninffton .

200

... .do .

201

Arthur P. Davis .

_ do .

202

William S. Post .

_ do .

203

William H. Herron .

_ do .

204

John McConn .

... .do .

205

R. U. Goode .

... .do .

206

_ do .

207

208

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

_ _ do .

209

Perry Fuller .

_ _ do .

210

TVilllam H. Otis .

_ do .

211

J. B. Lippincott .

_ do .

212

Charles F. Urquhart .

_ _ do .

213

R. H. Chapman .

_ do .

214

P. H. Grady .

_ do .

215

Nichols & Yager .

_ .do .

216

John Stromburg .

_ do .

217

Redick H. HeE^ee .

_ do .

218

A. F. Dunnington .

... .do .

219

E. Ritchie &. Sons .

220

O. T. Triplett .

221

. . . .do .

222

Pat Kelley .

.... do . .

223

_ do .

224

Frank Given .

... .do .

225

A. W. Koen .

.... do .

226

_ _ do .

227

.... do .

228

229

230

Field supplies .

231

E. A. Palm .

_ _ do .

232

... .do .

233

_ do .

234

235

S. C. Gallup .

_ do .

236

_ _ do .

237

..do .

238

239

O’Neill & Co ....

240

...do .

241

_ do .

242

. . .do .

243

. do .

244

J. C. Page .

_ do .

Amount.

$74. 52
27. 71
32. 67

41.63
19. 25

34.35
21. 25
38. 75
21.25
16. 60
40. 00
40. 75

7.00
13.06
21.29
38. 70
37. 09
60.00

8. 75
50. 00
75. 00

102. 20

29. 03
113. 69
191.93
398. 38

50. 04
65. 50
26. 40

21.44

30. 89
8. 85

125. 02
40. 00

48. 25
74. 10

32. 25
80. 30
19. 90

87.39

33. 25

15.45
6. 55
7.21

55. 45
36. 95

12.39
200. 05

73.50
205. 74

45. 16

21.25

17.50
13.00

6. 00
30. 00
41.80

53.50
65. 25
55. 00

6. 75
19. 02

30.63

13.25
10.49

13.36
7.50

45. 71
17.00

7. 75
180. 33
120. OO
279. 06

26. 00

49. 38
95. 85
32. 50
24. 15

208

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS BY

Abstract of disbursements made by James W. Spencer, etc. — Continued.

APPROPRIATIONS FOR U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY— Continued.

Date.

Voucher

1891.

June 9

245

246

247

248

249

250

251

252

253

254

255

256

257

258

259

200

261

262

263

264

265

266

267

268

269

270

271

272

273

274

275

276

277

278

279

280

281

282

283

284

285

286

287

288

289

290

291

292

293

294

295

296

297

298

299

300

301

302

303

304

305

306

307

308

309

310

311

312

313

314

315

316

317

318

319

320

321

322

To whom paid.

For what paid.

S. S. Mitchell .

William H. Otis .

_ do .

C. C. Martin .

_ do .

_ _ do .

E. T. Perkins, jr .

_ _ do .

_ do .

Eorage .

... .do .

E. M. Kennedy .

W. T. Griswold .

... .do .

H. E. Clermont Eeusier .

E. G.'Amickl .

J. H. Frishie .

C. 1). Baldwin .

John M. Killen & Co .

M. Strain .

_ _ do .

W. H. Sanders .

T. L. Denny .

_ _ do .

Yanorsdal &. Everett .

_ do .

Coffin and Northrop Co .

Eield supplies .

J. P. Chinn . . .

.... do .

C. Jacobs .

Kedick H. McKee .

Thomas Othet .

E. T. Perkins .

T. E. Gral’ton .

. . . .do

Stuart P. Johnson .

. . . .do .

. . . . do .

_ do _

J. W. Dobbins .

J. H. Erisbie .

William H. Herron .

Field expenses .

H. E. Clermont Feusier .

_ do .

. . . .do .

_ do .

W. T. Griswold .

_ do .

A. F. Dunnington .

_ _ do .

William S. Post .

Joseph Jacobs .

_ do .

Goldberg, Bowen & Co .

A. Lietz & Co .

Morris Bien .

Perry Fuller .

Stuart P. Johnson .

George O. Glavis, ir .

T. S. Clark . . .

A. H. Thompson .

Frank Frates .

_ do .

Sperry & Co .

Coffin & Seetou .

....do .

Amount.

$72. 09
693. 89
50. 00
60. 00
40. 00

113. 01

76. 30

49. 15
75. 93

50. 50
63. 90

45.30

28. 35

13. 50
402. 51

9.75

17. 75
30. 25

160. 00

18. 33
168. 00

22. 00

43. 25
39. 05

8.50
6. 09
5. 00

32. 25
86. 42

125. 32
38. 40
74.00
80. 40
31.88
68. 62
30. 00
6. 00
50. 00

19. 35
26.60
19.00

3.40

114. 90

4.50

3. 75
29. 20

17. 15
39.25

8. 95
81.60
62. 58
42. 50
66. 40
12. 30
8. 25
10. 60
12. 30
29. 95
16. 66
71. 20

33. 35
33. 00

44. 30
122. 98

50. 92
16. 20
350. 54
25. 00
122. 62
27. 50
23. 90
25. 80
50. 00
204. 50
615. 85
250. 00
197. 75

233. 15

M'CHEBNET.]

THE HEADS OF DIVISIONS

209

Abstract of disbursements made by James II'. Spencer, etc. — Continued.

Date.

Vouchor

1891.

June 25

323

324

325

326

327

328

329

330

331

332

333

334

335

336

337

338

339

340

341

342

343

344

345

346

347

348

349

350

351

352

353

354

355

356

357

358

359

360

361

362

363

364

To whom paid.

For wliat paid.

J. P. Waldron .

E. A. Stuart .

Krakauer, York & Moze....

W. H. Shelton .

Gross, Blackwell &. Co .

C. C. Huddleston .

B. F. Acuff & Co .

- do .

F. A. Jones .

A. Deeter .

Elliott & Co .

S. Ecker .

H. S. Ballou .

J. C. King .

T. L. Minor .

William P. Trowbridge, jr .

Coxliead A Harrell .

George Ryneal, jr .

William P. Trowbridge, jr. .

C. C. Bassett .

Willard I). Johnson .

Overpeck Bros .

Torn, Sweeney Hardware Co
O’Neill & Co .

....do .

. . . do .

Humburgh & Masgott .

Spratlen & Anderson .

R. P. Conant .

E. A. Palm .

....do .

Ah Sam .

H. H. Hackett .

J. M. Dikeman .

P. Y. S. Bartlett .

Pay roll, Griswold .

Pay roll, Trowbridge .

Pay roll. Chapman .

Pay roll, Feusier. . . .

Pay roll, McKee .

Pay roll, Douglas .

Pay roll, Perkins .

Forage .

Field supplies .

. . .do .

...do .

. . .<io .

...do .

. . .do .

Subsistence .

. . .do . . . .

. . .do .

.. .do .

. . .do .

Field expenses . . .

...do .

. . .do .

...do .

Instruments .

Traveling expenses .

Field expenses .

. . .do .

Field supplies .

...do .

Subsistence .

Forage .

. . .do .

Subsistence .

Forage .

. . .do. .

Field supplies .

Services, June .

. . .do .

...do .

. . .do .

...do .

. . do .

...do .

. . .do .

...do .

Amount.

$27. 50

316. 60
153.70

317. 30
133. 92

74.22

55. 40
333. 76
141.95

52.00

48.43

133. 75
40. 27
78. 47

134. 60
125. 82
103. 37
137. 35

36. 50
356. 06
43.05
79. 80

62. 40
43.17
13. 50
42. 00

205. 97
146. 20
35. 88
29. 04
11.89
17.33
52. 50
60. 00
82. 40
264. 80
350. 00
291. 90
143. 90
272. 90
610. 50
394. 30

Total .

Grand total

18,545. 66
616, 515. 83

ANALYSIS OF DISBURSEMENTS.

Under the following heads appear the total expenditures under the
various appropriations for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1801 :

1. Salaries, office of the Director . $34, 721. 00

2. Salaries of scientific assistants . 66, 587. 53

3. Skilled laborers and various temporary employes . 14, 991. 78

4. Topography . ' . 299, 837. 48

5. Geology . 100, 966. 28

6. Paleontology . 39, 559. 08

7. Chemical and physical researches . 16,652.87

8. Preparation of illustrations . 13, 699. 14

9. Mineral Resources of the United States . 5, 625. 42

10. Books for library . 3, 397. 74

11. Geological maps of the United States . 19,643.75

12. Rent of office rooms . 2, 933. 26

Total . 618,615.33

1 2 GEOL - 14

210

REPORTS OF HEADS OF DIVISIONS.

RECAPITULATION.

Geological

survey.

Salaries, office
of Director.

Geological
maps of the
Uni ted States.

Total.

Appropriation fiscal year ending J line 30, 1891 . .
Expended as per detailed statement herewith . .
Bonded railroad accounts :

Freight . $388. 05

Transportation of assistants - 1,711.45

$613, 900. 00
562, 151. 08

2, 099. 50

$35, 540. 00
34, 721. 00

$70, 000. 00
19, 643. 75

$719, 440. 00
616, 515. 83

2, 099. 50

49,649.42 819.00

50, 356. 25

100, 824. 67

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

PAPERS ACCOMPANYING THE ANNUAL REPORT

OF THK

DIRECTOR OF THE U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

FOR THE

FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1891.

211

’

• ,

THE ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

NATHANIEL SOUTHGATE SHALEE.

213

CONTENTS.

Page.

Prefatory note . 219

Nature and origin of soils . 221

Processes of soil formation . 230

Cliff talus soils . .• . 232

Glaciated soils . 236

Volcanic soils . 239

Soils of newly elevated ocean bottoms . 245

Physiology of soils . 250

Effect of animals and plants on soils . 268

Effect of certain geologic conditions of soils . 287

Glacial aggregation . 288

Alluvial aggregation . 288

Overplacement . 296

Inheritance . 300

Certain peculiar soil conditions . 306

Swamp soils . 311

Marine marshes . 317

Tule lands . 320

Ancient soils . 321

Prairie soils . 323

Wind-blown soils . 326

Actiou aud reaction of man and the soil . 329

Effects of soil on health . 340

Man’s duty to the earth . 344

215

ILLUSTRATIONS.

Page.

Pl. II. View on the eastern shore of Cape Ann, Massachusetts, showing

shore line stripped of soil materials by wave action . . 226

III. Glaciated rock surface from which the thin soil has been swept

away, eastern Massachusetts . 228

IV. Effect of glacial action on a surface which has not yet been re-cov¬

ered by soil . 230

V. Precipices with talus of rock fragments passing downward into

rude alluvial terraces . 232

VI. View showing varied rate of decay of talus formation in Tri-

assic sandstone schist near Fort Wingate, New Mexico . 234

VII. Process of decay of soft rocks which are easily worn by flowing

water . 236

VIII. Earthquake fissure in Arizona, showing the manner in which

these shocks may rupture the surface . 238

IX. Process of decay in talus formation in much-jointed granitic rock,

Mount Lyell, Sierra Nevada, California . 240

X. View showing the process of rock decay where the material con¬
tains solid portions which are not readily corroded . 242

XI. View of a mountain valley showing coalesced talus slopes through

which the river finds its way below the surface . 244

XII. Talus deposits in a mountain gorge where the stream has slight

cutting power, Lake Canyon, California . 346

XIII. Process of erosion of rather soft rock, the talus from which is

invading forest . 248

XIV. Cliff's of soft rock without distinct talus . . . 250

XV. Morainal front in eastern Massachusetts, showing the way in

which vegetation occupies a bowlder strewn surface . 252

XVI. Drumlins or lenticular hills in eastern Massachusetts, showing

the arched outlines of these deposits . 254

XVII. Aspect of a surface on which lie extinct volcanoes; also showing

details of talus structure . 256

XVIII. View showing rapid decay of lava . 258

XIX. Process of decay of obsidian or glassy lavas near Mono Lake,

California . 260

XX. Margin of a lava stream overflowing soil occupied by vegetation. 262

XXI. Summit of Mount Vesuvius, showing cone of coarse volcanic ash

lying upon lava which occupies the foreground . 264

XXII. View near caves of Luray, Virginia, showing the character of

surface in a country underlaid by caverns . 266

XXIII. Broad alluvial valley in a mountainous district, the area partly

improved by irrigation ditches . 290

XXIV. View of a mountain valley, showing the beginnings of the river

alluvial plains . 292

217

218 ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

Page.

Pl. XXV. Beginnings of alluvial terraces in tlie upper part of the Cumber¬
land River valley, Kentucky . 294

XXVI. Ox-how swing of a river in an alluvial plain : the Ganges, India. 296
XXVII. View in the Dismal Swamp of Virginia, showing character of

vegetation in that district . 312

XXVIII. Reclaimed fields in the central portion of the Dismal Swamp, Vir¬
ginia . 314

XXIX. Vegetation in the fresli-water swamps of central Florida . 316

XXX. Form of surface in an elevated region south of the glaciated belt. 330

XXXI. View showing the gradual passage from rock to soil . 332

Fig. 1. Diagram showing the history of a talus . 233

2. Sections showing the two common varieties of glacial detritus . 238

3. Successive states of a district where volcanoes are for a time active.. 241

4. Map showing comparative development of stream beds in a district

when it is forested and when the wood is removed . 254

5. Diagram showing action of soil water in excavating caverns . 257

6. Diagram showing one of the conditions by which soil water may

penetrate deeply and emerge as a hot spring . 258

7. Effect of roots of trees on the formation of soil . 270

8. First effect of overturned trees on soil . 273

9. Final effect of overturned trees on soil . 274

10. Diagram showing process by which a stone may be buried by the

action of earthworms and other animals . 275

11. Effect of ant-hills on soils . 279

12. Section through the coarse alluvium formed beside a torrent bed _ 290

13. Section across a river valley showing terraces of alluvium . 291

14. Section across alluvial plain on one side of a large river . 292

15. Diagram showing the effect of a layer of rock yielding fertilizing ele¬

ments to the soil . 296

16. Diagram showing the direction and rate of motion of soil . 297

17. Diagram showing progress of fragments down a slope to a stream _ 298

18. Diagram showing relative state of soils in lower part of mountain

valley and in the “ cove ” at its head . 299

19. Diagram showing successive variations in fertility in the soils of

central Kentucky during the downward movement of the rocks . . . 302

20. Diagram showing the lateral migration of streams in their descent

through inclined rocks . 303

21. Section across ordinary lake in glacial drift . 314

22. Diagrammatic section through lake basin showing formation of infu¬

sorial earth . 316

23. Section from seashore to interior of district recently elevated above

the sea level . . . 317

24. Section showing the origin and structure of marine marshes . 318

25. Section through coal bed . 322

26. Section showing process of formation and closing of gullies on hill¬

sides . 332

27. Diagrams showing one of the ordinary conditions of water supply. .. 343

THE ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

By N. S. Shaler.

PREFATORY NOTE.

The object of this report is to set before the general reader a some¬
what popular account of the origin and nature of soils; to show the im¬
portance of their relations not only to the well being of men but their
influence on the course of the physical and organic events which have de¬
termined the geologic history of the planet. It is also intended to show
that this slight superficial and inconstant covering of the earth should
receive a measure of care which is rarely devoted to it; that even more
than the deeper mineral resources it is a precious inheritance which
should be guarded by every possible means against the insidious degra¬
dation to which the processes of tillage ordinarily lead.

The peculiar order of the relations of civilized men to the soil are
now the subject of serious discussion. More clearly than ever before
it is perceived that the roots of our society, like those of a tree, strike
deep into the fertile earth and draw thence the nurture which maintains
all its springs of life. The way in which the soil may best be made to
support the state, the laws by which it can most effectively secure this
need, the measure of governmental interference with the ownership of the
fields and forests, are now all matters of serious debate. In the consid¬
eration of these problems it it desirable that the nature of the matter
under discussion should be well understood. We should as far as pos¬
sible obtain a clear notion as to the way in which the varied soils stand
related to the needs of our people. It is of importance, for instance, to
know how much tillable land still remains in the unused reserves of the
inundated and arid districts of this country and how far these may pro¬
vide for the necessities of the generations to come. It is equally desir¬
able for us to know the extent to which the fertility of this superficial
coating of the earth needs the peculiar care which men give to their
personal property, but which they rarely if ever devote to goods which
are not endeared to them by absolute possession. The discussion of
these and many other correlated questions demands a certain amount of
knowledge which in order to meet the need must be separated from the

219

220

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

special learning or at least the special phases of the several sciences ol
geology, physics, chemistry, and botany, which are applied to the in¬
quiries relating to the constitution and economy of the soil.

It is a somewhat remarkable fact that while the scientific treatises on
soils are very numerous constituting, indeed, a tolerably rich literature,
the general essays on the subject are few in number and are, moreover,
almost without exception, devoted either to the conditions of some par¬
ticular region or to a particular class of questions which demand in the
reader who is to obtain profit from their pages a considerable amount
of training in chemical science. So far as I have learned there is no
work in our own or in any other language which will give the reader
who lias not had special technical training in the subject any connected
story concerning soil problems, which will in familiar phrase tell him
the leading and most important facts concerning the chemistry, physics,
and geologic history of these deposits. The farmer who imperatively
needs to know something as to the part of the earth with which he is
dealing is, in the main, compelled to rely upon personal or traditional
experience as the guide of his conduct. This body of inherited learn¬
ing is doubtless of great value; it is indeed in the best sense scientific
as well as practical, for it rests, as all true science does, on a series of
experiments; yet it is necessarily limited, for the reason that it is de¬
rived from contact with the conditions of a small field. For its best use
it needs the enlargement of view which comes from an understanding
of the general aspect of the subject and a knowledge of the experience
of other men in other regions who are dealing with the same class of
problems.

Where the people who till a particular soil have dwelt for centuries
upon the same ground, the mass of learning concerning it which is
gathered in tradition is usually very great, and in most cases provides
better guidance for the husbandman than any more recondite science
can afford him. The folk who have summered and wintered with their
fields for many generations know in most cases the effects of diverse
means of tillage in a very complete way. The effect of this ancestral
experience in such immemorially cultivated land is commonly shown in
the preservation of the original fertility of the earth or even in the en¬
hancement of its returns by the skillful treatment which it has received.
The people have in these cases learned how to husband and augment
the soil resources, and a sound public opinion commands a large meas¬
ure of care in agriculture. In these countries the owner has himself
struck root in the soil; he has come to love it as the source of his
own life and to look forward to the time when it will nurture his de¬
scendants. He may appear to the eye as a stupid peasant, but he is
in most cases learned in all that relates to his acres from his own ex¬
perience and the body of information which has come down to him from
the past.

It is otherwise in this new world of America. Save here and there

SHALEB.]

CONDITIONS OF INQUIRY.

221

in the parts of the country longest settled, the traditions concerning
the soil of any district are comparatively meager. It is indeed rare to
find a farm which has been tilled for as much as a century by the mem¬
bers of one family. The larger part of the land, particularly that of
the Northern States, has been occupied but a few years by the people
who now possess it. A great portion of our agriculturists have but
recently come upon the fields which they cultivate. Thus among the
farmers of the continent there is no extended experience in the condi¬
tions of the soil they till. Left to such lessons, it will require genera¬
tions to gain that information which the history of other fields might
readily and immediately supply. It is in this way that science can best
help in practical affairs such as agriculture and mining, viz, by pre¬
senting the results which have been gathered over a wide area of
ground for the guidance of laborers in a particular field.

One of the greatest improvements in modern agriculture consists in
the use of various mineral manures which within the lifetime of many
active men have been made elements of commerce. Although the profit
of these resources is in most cases to be quickly and cheaply determined
by actual trial, it is, nevertheless, important that those who are inter¬
ested in farming should know something concerning the nature and
origin of these geologic fertilizers in order that they may be prepared to
discover them in their own districts. There can be no question that at
a great number of as yet undiscovered localities in this country there
are deposits which will serve well as sources of materials for the refresh¬
ment of the soils. As far as seems practicable within the limited scope
of this essay, care is taken to point out the conditions in which such ma¬
terials may be expected to occur.

Although it is hoped that the practical needs of many persons may
be served by this essay, the main intent of it is to afford a clear, sim¬
ple and connected idea of the place of the soil in the economy of nature.
So far as this can be done it will tend to ennoble the conception of all
those relations with the earth on which the daily life of mankind de¬
pends, and on which the whole future of our civilization must rest.
To obtain this end it will be necessary to devote the larger part of the
essay to a study of the origin and nature of soils, showing how they
originate, and the steps by which they are continually reformed. Only
by a careful discussion of these points can the true nature and im¬
portance of this covering be made plain.

NATURE AND ORIGIN OF SOILS.

Many of the most noteworthy features of this world are, by their ever
present nature, in a way concealed from us. The starry depths of the
heavens afford a spectacle which would overwhelm the minds of men if
they were revealed to us but once in a generation, but from the famil¬
iarity of the vision they nightly pass unregarded. In a like manner
the soil beneath our feet, because we have been accustomed to its phe-

222

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

iiomena for all our lives, appears to us commonplace and uninteresting;
it seems a mere matter of course that it should everywhere exist and
that from it should spring the manifold forms of life; that into it the
dust of all things should return to await the revival of the impulse which
lifted them into the living realm. Now and then a poetic spirit, antici¬
pating with the imagination the revelations of science, has spoken of
the earth as the mother of all; but the greater part of mankind, those
who are well instructed as well as the ignorant, look upon the soil as
something essentially unclean, or at least as a mere disorder of frag¬
mentary things from which seeds manage in some occult way to draw
the sustenance necessary for their growth. Any chance contact with
this material fills them with disgust, and they regard their repugnance
as a sign of culture.

It is one of the moral functions of science to change this attitude of
men to the soil which has borne them; to bring men to a clear recogni¬
tion of the marvel and beauty of the mechanism on which the existence
of all the living beings of the earth intimately depends. This end it
attains through the clear views which it opens into the structure and
history of the earth by removing the dull conception of mere chance
which we almost instinctively apply to the phenomena of nature, and in
its place giving an understanding of those processes which lead to the
order and harmony of the universe. In no part of this great work of
ordering and ennobling nature in our understanding is modern learning
doing a better or more profitable work than in removing the veil of the
commonxdace with which long and ignorant familiarity has wrapped this
earth, hiding its dignified meaning from the understandings of men.
Though this task is but begun, enough has been accomplished to insure
in those who have an appetite for such truths a nobler conception of
this sphere, a new and imposing sense of the relations which they them¬
selves and all their living fellows bear to the earth which has nurtured
them.

This view of the moral relations of men to the earth is attained by the
method of science in a simple way; following step by step the history of
the earth’s features and noting the processes by which they have taken
form, there gradually develops in the mind a sense of the activities and
the relations between the forces which have shaped its growth. No
sooner is this inquiry begun than the mind ceases to look upon this
sphere as a dull matter-of-course. Every event in the history is seen
to have been determined by well adjusted modes of action. Each of
these events blends its influence with every other so that the whole
sphere moves forward in the process of its evolution, a vast array of
forces perfectly ordered in their ongoing, steadfastly winning successes
in organization and bringing all of its activities to a higher plane of
existence.

It is beyond the compass of the human mind at once to conceive the
course of the many different, fields of this earth’s progressive activities.

SHALER.]

SUBSTANCES COMPOSING SOILS.

223

We have to limit our inquiries to some particular part of the vast realm
in order that the number of the considerations may fall within the com¬
pass of our understanding. The student of the earth may select any
one of the dominions of its mechanism and from the study win an ex¬
alted conception of the wisdom and beauty of its processes. On many
accounts the soil covering is the best held for the beginner of such
inquiries. The facts with which he has to deal are in general of a
simpler and more evident nature than those which are afforded by the
concealed portions of the globe. They are everywhere presented and
are to a great extent open to the light of day, while the student of the
earth’s successive periods or of its mineral deposits is compelled to seek
beneath the surface and in many different lands for the phenomena
he deals with. The observer of the soils everywhere finds the part of
nature with which he is concerned close about him and accessible to his
inquiry, as are no other parts of the geologic field. All that is needed
is an interest in the problem and an easily acquired training in certain
simple methods of observation to fit any one for the study of the more
evident phenomena of soils.

As the greater part of the soils of the earth in their natural condition
are forest clad, we shall begin our inquiry with the portions of the earth
which are covered with woods. The reader should, however, bear in
mind the fact that a large portion of the lands are destitute of timber,
and are either covered by a luxuriant growth of lowly plants, as in the
case of the prairies, or in arid districts may present a very scanty growth
of vegetation. In certain very rare cases the surface bears a true soil
which does not support any vegetation whatever; but in such instances
we may be sure that a recent elimatal change has led to the destruction
of a vegetable coating which originally existed in the district.

In beginning a study of the soil covering it is well to gain an idea as
to the nature of this substance of which it is ordinarily composed. In
this first step it will be useful to select a handful of ordinary soil from
any convenient place, taking care that it is from within an inch or two
of the surface and from a place where it has not been disturbed for a
century. It is best it should be virgin soil; that is, unaffected by the
processes of tillage. The naked eye commonly shows us that the mass
is composed of two distinct kinds of materials. In part it is made up
of decayed vegetable matter, portions of which so far retain their living
shape that we can easily see that they are derived from leaves or twigs.
From these discernible bits, by progressive decay, the vegetable matter
shades down to less and less distinguishable form until it appears as an
unorganized blackish mold. Mingled with this dark waste of rotted
vegetation there are more or less distinct fragments of a stony nature
in the form of sand or pebbly matter. If the sample has been taken
from an old forest bed these bits of rock, may be so rare as to escape
observation; taken from a lower part of the soil they will always be evi¬
dent, if not to the eye, at least under a simple microscope, or, if that is

224

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

not convenient, they may be felt between the teeth as gritty particles.
Observing them closely we find that, however small, they are more or
less angular fragments of rock, generally a good deal decayed on the
surface, often so much changed that they fall into dust at a touch.
The magnifying glass shows that the process of decay is fracturing all
these fragments along their structural planes, joints, or cleavages, and
this indicates that some action is at work which serves to break up the
stony matter of the soil into an ever finer state of division. That this
action is in a way peculiar to the soil is shown by the fact that if we
take a sample of finely divided rock, as for instance from any soft sand¬
stone or other like deposit lying at a considerable depth below the soil,
we find that its grains do not exhibit this progressive decay. We shall
hereafter note how this breaking up of the stony matter is brought
about.

In order to see in a clear manner that the soil is not a mere mixture
of decayed organic matter and of broken-up rock it will be well for the
observer to make two small experiments which will throw much light
upon this problem. In one experiment, a sufficient quantity of the rock
lying beffiw the original soil at such depth as to preserve it from the
chemical influence of the superficial materials should be taken and re¬
duced to a state of division like that of the stony matter of the soil. In
this seeds of some grain-bearing plant, such as wheat, should be sprouted
and kept duly moistened with distilled or rain water. It will be ob¬
served that while the seeds readily germinate and enter on the process
of growth the plants soon become stunted and fail to produce their fruit.
If we then take decayed woody matter, such as forms the other com¬
ponent of the soil, carefully excluding all mineral materials from the
mass and, as before, sow it with grain, we find that there also the plants
grow for a time sustained by the nutriment contained in the seed and
the trifle of sustenance they find in the materials about their roots, but
they likewise fail to come to full maturity. It is not indeed necessary,
to perform these experiments artificially. We may often observe them
in the fields. On the storm-blown places where the natural soil has
been removed by the wind and bare sand exposed we may observe that
the seeds of the tough wild grasses, which lodge upon this material,
sprout as in the suggested experiment with powdered rock, but die be¬
fore they blossom. In other places we may see where some dee]) mossy
bog has been recently drained and an effort made to reduce it to culti¬
vation. Hardly any flowering plants will ripen their seeds upon it, the
pure vegetable mold evidently being unfit for this nurture. It is nec¬
essary to remove this swamp deposit by burning or by allowing it to
decay until it is so thin that the plow can mingle the humus with the
rocky matter which lies beneath the layer before any green crops can
flourish upon it.

Although it is in general true that decayed organic matter is neces¬
sary to fit a soil for the uses of vegetation, it should be remarked that

SHALEU.]

AREAL DISTRIBUTION OF SOILS.

225

in certain instances the earth may yield its mineral stores to vegetation
even where there is no trace of decayed organisms in the mass. This
condition occurs most commonly in arid lands which by irrigation have
been made fit for tillage. Such soils, even where destitute of organic
matter in a state of decay, often have a relatively large proportion of
their mineral ingredients in a state in which they may be assimilated
by the roots. The reason for this exceptional condition is perhaps as
follows, viz : Even in the desert districts there is a small amount of
rainfall, enough to provide the soil at certain times of the year with a
share of water. This water effects the decomposition of the mineral
matter in a slow way, but as the substances made ready for solution are
not removed by plants, nor to any extent carried away by underground
movements of water, they remain stored in the earth and are ready for
the use of vegetation when the field is provided with water.

In some parts of the Southern States, notably in Florida, soils which
contain scarcely a trace of organic waste at the depth of say an inch
below the surface will nourish vegetation. In this case the solution of
the mineral substances is probably in good part effected through the
action of the water which, in its course through the thin layer of de¬
cayed vegetation, takes up the acids which facilitate, though they are
not absolutely necessary to, the decay of the rocky matter.

These artificial or natural instances appear to show us that true fer¬
tilized soils are not usually made of either stony matter or vegetable
materials alone; that what is needed is a mixture of the two substances.
Similar experiments, or, in their iilace, observation in the field, will in¬
dicate that some time must elapse after the mineral and vegetable
materials are mingled together before the soil becomes adapted to the
growth of plants which produce fruits important to man; it in general
requires a year or more for the results of the mixture to be evident.
The general meaning of this evidence is plain ; it is clearly to the effect
that true fertilized soils, at least those from the point of view of human
interests and needs, are the result of some reaction between the decayed
organic matter and the broken-up bits of the solid earth with which
it is commingled in varying proportions according to the circumstances
of its development. Before we proceed to consider the natural history
of soils, in which task we shall endeavor to show the way in which this
commingling of their organic and inorganic components has been
brought about and the chemical influences arising therefrom, it will be
best for us to examine in a brief way into the effects jof this mixture of
these decayed materials derived from the remains of forms which were
once living and from the lifeless rocks. In this way we shall see some¬
thing, at least, of the importance of the questions with which we are to
deal, and shall at the same time have a chance to note the problems
which in our further inquiries we should seek to solve. Co- ^

One of the most noteworthy features of soils is their wide extension
over the surface of the lands. It is only in a very small portion of the
12 gkeol - 15

226

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

land area that they are absent. The nature and origin of these frag¬
mentary and on the whole insignificant soilless areas should be noted,
for the facts are very instructive. We observe in the first place that
soils are wanting on those surfaces of the bed rocks which are swept by
moving water in such manner that the detrital materials can not remain
in their natural position. The shores of the existing sea and of some
ancient sea margins within the section beaten by the waves, the rocky
beds of rivers and torrents, the steep parts of mountains where the rain
urged downward by gravity clears everything before it until it flows on
the bed-rock, are instances of this action (see PI. u). Also, where rocks
are steeply inclined, the effect of frequent earthquake shocks is to urge
all loose materials in a sliding motion to the base of the declivity.
Again, in regions from which glacial ice has recently disappeared it
happens that occasional patches of bed-rock are left without any of the
detrital coating which is usually deposited on such surfaces (see IT. iii).
In regions overflowed by lavas derived from recent volcanic eruptions
we now and then find that the once fluid but now solid rock has not yet
become soil covered (see PI. xxi). Lastly, in certain places where the
soil at times when the wind blows violently is very dry and maintains
at best but a scanty vegetation, the moving air may sweep it away.
Notwithstanding this considerable list of conditions which may lead to
a soilless earth, at least nineteen-twentieths of the land areas are occu¬
pied by a coating of commingled rocky and organic matter of sufficient
thickness and fertility to afford sustenance to a varied vegetation and
in a greater or less measure, if carefully tilled, to contribute to the ne¬
cessities of mankind.

However these soils may differ in their character we shall find that
they all have the common feature above noted of containing an admix¬
ture of materials derived from the decay of the firm-set underlying
earth and similarly decayed fragments of plants and animals ; the ani¬
mal remains are less evident and important, but they are present in all
soils and in many of them are a considerable element in their composi¬
tion. On the adjustment in the proportions of these diversely originating
materials depends to a grejit extent the fitness of the earth in the par¬
ticular region to bear an abundant vegetation, whether planted by
nature or by art. The variations in this regard largely depend on the
operation of the natural agents which serve to bring about and main¬
tain this association of the two elements, the organic and the inorganic,
which compose the soil.

The extension of the soil coating of the earth is not more widespread
or more evident than its importance to the organic life of the land.
Nearly the whole of the plants other than those of the sea and the lichens
and mosses require as the first condition of their existence that there
shall be a soil beneath them from which they may derive the mineral or
ashy parts of their bodies and the water of their sap. On the arid soil¬
less lauds of the desert or on lava rocks we may find a variety of the

VIEW ON THE EASTERN SHORE OF CAPE ANN, MASSACHUSETTS, SHOWING SHORE LINE STRIPPED OF SOIL MATERIALS BY WAVE ACTION.

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DEPENDENCE OF OKGANIC LIFE ON SOILS.

227

rootless non-flowering plants such as the u tripe (le roe he, 77 a species
of lichen, or the u poverty grass,77 another similar plant of the sandier
fields of New England, but unless there be a distinct though it may be
thin soil, none of the higher plants, especially those of importance to
man, will grow there. So, too, on the bogs where the vegetable mold
is deep and the plants can not strike their roots through it to the under
earth and where the deposit is so placed that mineral matter can not be
washed in from the land or blown on by the winds, we find the vegeta¬
tion to consist of species which, like the water-loving mosses, have but a
small amount of mineral matter in their composition. This mineral
matter they give, when they decay, to the swamp water, whence it is
returned to the growing forms. No plants having nutritious seeds or
fruits, none yielding strong fibers or endowed with other qualities mak¬
ing them immediately valuable to man or useful to him because they
serve the needs of food for his domesticated animals, will flourish in
these swamps, where the depth and purity of the vegetable mold ex¬
cludes the roots from the advantages of a true soil. It is by such
observations made plain that were it not for the peculiar conditions
which are afforded by this admixture of the debris of the underearth
and of organic bodies, the higher plants which afford sustenance to
man and to all the higher animals as well would have no place on this
sphere.

A little consideration of the relations of the higher animals to plants
makes it clear that all the advance of the earth’s life above its simpler
forms depends upon the existence of moderately fertile soils such as
produce food fit for the nurture of the higher forms. They could not
have developed if the world had afforded no better provision for them
than the lichens of the rocks or the mosses ot the peat swamps. We
thus see that the soil is really the immediate source not only of the
superior kind of plants which feed in the soil, but also of the animals
which depend upon them. If the plants, such as those which produce
fruits, grains, or nutritious herbage, had not had this field for their
development there would have been no chance for the evolution of the
series of animals which have led life up to the estate of man to find a
place upon the earth. Important as the effects of the soil are to more
advanced beings, they have been almost as important to many of the
lower orders of life. Of the vast array of insects existing on the earth,
the species of which are to be numbered by the hundred thousand, the
greater part likewise depend for their nutrition either on the food
they obtain from the soil nurtured on higher plants or on other animals
which themselves feed on such vegetation; only a few lowly forms can
subsist on plants which do not require true roots for their support. The
bees and ants, nearly all the butterflies and moths, in fact all but a
trifling remnant of the insect world, need the conditions which the soils
bring about quite as much as does man or his kindred among the mam¬
mals.

228

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

It is not alone on the relations of the soil to the life of the land, how¬
ever, that we must look for its action in the economy of the world; those
relations, though most important and apparent, are not the most far-
reaching of the consequences which arise from the mingling of decayed
organisms with the stony matter of the earth. To perceive these we
must look in succession at the conditions of the seas and of the rocks
which lie in the depths of the earth. We shall lind that on these appar¬
ently remote realms the influence of the soils is felt in many and inter¬
esting ways.

On the floors of the seas there is no soil coating; there is on these
surfaces a quantity of detritus worn from the land, cast into the .seas
by volcanoes or laid upon their bottoms by the decay of organic bodies,
the whole forming a layer which in many ways resembles the soil cover¬
ing of the lands, but it serves no purpose in nourishing vegetation.
The true algm or seaweeds have no roots ; they absorb through the sur¬
face of their bodies the materials which ordinary plants procure by
these processes. As the waters of the sea, and in a less considerable
way the fresh waters in our lakes and streams, contain a considerable
amount of mineral matter which they readily yield to these aquatic
plants, this lowly vegetation has not been compelled to invent the
special underground structures which take the ashy material neces¬
sary for their growth from the soil waters. When plants originating in
water forms were by the course of their development transferred to the
land, they found in the rain which fell upon their leaves no mineral
materials to serve their needs, and therefore the parts of their surfaces
above ground abandoned the function of absorbing mineral matter and
only the under earth parts retained those absorbing functions which
were common to the whole of the seaweed, and these roots performed
the office for the whole plant. As we shall see hereafter, it is in a con¬
siderable degree to the penetration of the roots that we owe the char¬
acteristic features of the soil ; therefore, while the materials accumulated
on the sea floor resemble in their fragmentary and unorganized form
those of the land surface, they really differ from them in a distinct and
important way.

There are other differences in the constitution of the sea-floor deposits
which separate them from the true soils; thus on the ocean bottom there
is no current of water through the detritus; none of that alternate
wetting and drying which is of very great importance in the economy of
soils. Only a few of the root-bearing plants have accustomed themselves
to draw nourishment from the debris deposited on the sea floor, and
these, like the mangrove tree, can do so oidy in the marine mud next
the shore, which is in large measure composed of waste washed in from
the neighboring land. Furthermore, though there is generally a soft
layer of a muddy or sandy nature lying on the floor of the water areas,
this matter is always passing from the incoherent to the compact state,
while on the surface of the lands the process is exactly reversed, the
change being from the solid condition of the rocks to the loose state of

GLACIATED ROCK SURFACE FROM WHICH THE THIN SOIL HAS BEEN SWEPT AWAY, EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. Ill

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

>»v

shaler.] CONTRAST BETWEEN CONDITIONS OF LAND AND SEA. 229

tlie soil materials. In a word, the marine conditions are those in which
the rocks are being integrated or built up, while on the land the state
is that of disintegration. It happens that these two contrasted proc¬
esses alike for a time afford materials of a somewhat similar appear¬
ance, though in fact the state of the respective deposits are essentially
dissimilar.

In the processes which go on beneath the surface of the soil of the
land and below the pseudo-soil or growing bed of the sea floor, we find
widely contrasted phenomena. Thus below the soil and thence indefi¬
nitely downward we find that the rain-water finds its way through
the innumerable crevices of the earth, carrying agents of change along
• with it. In this manner it produces the ordinary caverns of our lime¬
stone rocks and has a large share in the formation of mineral veins
and other alterations in the original character of the rocks. In many
cases these soil effects are propagated downward for hundreds if not
thousands of feet 5 in many parts of the world, in all portions of the
land, indeed, where the surface has not recently arisen from the sea or
been in late ages scraped away by the glaciers, this downward-going
influence of the soil is clearly marked to a great depth, producing in
general a profound decay of the rocks, which often become so much
softened that beds originally hard granite or tough mica schist may
easily be cut into with a miner’s pick. No such effects arise from the
presence of the detritus of the sea floor, for the reason that here is no
opportunity for the waters to penetrate downward from that lqvel in
the manner which occurs beneath the land.

r This contrast between the conditions of the sea floor and those of the
land in all that pertains to the effects of the detrital layer, if we consider
it well, points to the obvious and important general conclusion which
will be enforced by all that we shall have hereafter to consider, viz,
that the life of the land in a singular way depends upon the destructive
processes acting on the portions of the air-bathed parts of the earth’s
crust. It is to the ceaseless wearing down of the land that we owe the
formation and preservation of the wonderful mixture of decayed rock
and organic matter which forms our soil. This is one of the most
beautiful and significant facts of nature; it shows us that the processes,
which from a short-sighted view we term destructive and associate with
death, are in fact but steps in the system of advance which lead matter
from the lower mineral state to the higher condition of organic forms.

The foregoing inadequate sketch as to the general place of soils in
nature will serve to show, at least in outline, the importance of the
problem which they present, and also to indicate the path which our
inquiry should pursue. We shall now undertake to trace the genesis
of soils in the different conditions in which they come into existence,
beginning with instances in which the observer may verify the state¬
ments in almost any part of the world, and then passing to those cases
in which the process is not so easily seen but has in a measure to be
inferred from geological study.

230

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

PROCESSES OF SOIL FORMATION.

From wliat we have already considered it is evident that soils are not
original features of the land areas, but have been in some way produced
after they were elevated above the sea.

Nearly all the areas of the continents and islands are known by geolo¬
gists to have been formed beneath the sea and then uplifted above the
level of the water. The process of their soil-making necessarily began
when the rocks of which they are composed were clad with land vegeta¬
tion and subjected to the manifold influences of the atmosphere. From
time to time, the soils, after they were formed, were swept away by vari¬
ous chances, as when glaciers removing the soft materials left the rock
bare, where earthquake-shocks have caused the soil to slip from steep
places into the valleys, when lava floods or volcanic ashes have buried
portions of the surface beneath layers of rock, or in a far less important
but for us significant way, when man for some purpose has stripped away
the soil from the surface of a part of the earth. To the observer these
instances of the artificial baring and subsequent covering of the bed¬
rock again with soil are particularly interesting for the reason that they
can be more easily understood than the larger work done over culti¬
vated areas ; the effects are also more compatible in these partly arti¬
ficial cases than those of the purely natural sort. We shall therefore
begin our studies with this small class of soils which we may observe
to be forming in old quarries or other places where the detrital coating
has been for many years stripped away and the surface left to the pro¬
cesses of nature. (See Pis. hi, iv, xvm, xx, xxi.)

In all the older parts of this and other countries, where the rocks be¬
low the soil are of a nature to make it worth while to quarry them,
abandoned pits can be found, and the length of time which has elapsed
since the area of the bare rock was left untouched may usually be de¬
termined with tolerable accuracy.

Visiting any such old excavations where the rocks have not been
stripped away for, say, ten years, we observe that on the surface of the
stone there is a discoloration which gives it a hue differing clearly from
that exhibited in the neighboring quarries where the faces have been
recently disclosed in quarrying. Examining the rock closely with a
glass the mineralogist can detect the beginnings of the decay arising
from the exposure of the materials to the sun’s hear and to frost and
rain. The feldspar shows signs of the change which reduces it to the
state of kaolin, a very soft material, and the hornblende exhibits marks
of rusting due to the combination of the iron which it contains with the
oxygen of the air. These changes are least on the vertical faces and
steep slopes of the quarry ; on the level surfaces they are much more
advanced; we can indeed find spots where the water stands in shallow
pools, where the decay has advanced to a point that a little sand and
mud gathers as a film on the stone, the coarse grained fragments being

EFFECT OF GLACIAL ACTION ON A SURFACE WHICH HAS NOT YET BEEN RE-COVERED BY SOIL.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. IV

shales.] PROCESSES OF SOIL-MAKING. 231

the half-shaped crystals of quartz and the finer matter the decayed
feldspar.

All over the surface of a quarry which has been abandoned for as
much as ten years we find that tiny lichens have attached themselves
to the stone and from it drawn the small amount of mineral matter
which they require for their bodies ; this they can not do except for the
decay which has served to render the material soluble. Even where
the unaided eye fails to observe this vegetable growth an ordinary
magnifying glass will generally reveal it. At the foot of the slope of
rock we may notice a small talus of debris which has washed from the
rocks above; examining the mass we find it to be composed in part
of stony material, the crystals of which have become detached by decay,
and partly of the remains of the lichens which are constantly dying and
contributing their waste to the deposit. That the accumulation thus
formed is a true bit of soil is clearly shown by the fact that when it is
kept moist it affords a foothold for many small flowering plants. The
crevices of the rock formed by the joint planes and other fissures are
often filled with the debris which has been washed into them by the
rains and blown there by the winds and thus affords points of vantage
for many flowering plants, which in the moist springtime are sufficiently
nourished to flower and ripen their seeds, though in the dry and heated
season of summer they wither away.

The share taken by the winds in bringing about the accumulation of
dust in ancient quarries is often considerable, but in a verdure clad
region like New England the detrital material is usually derived from
the artificial cliffs of the quarry.

In the older quarries, the stone of which has been exposed to the ele¬
ments for 50 years or more, we find the same process of decay much
more advanced; the heap of debris begins to creep up the slope and
sustain larger and more luxuriant plants ; the rifts in the rock are here
and there occupied by species of trees which tolerate occasional droughts
and their roots are wedging the fractured stones apart so that some
fragments have fallen to the base of the slopes. In this work the frost
plays also an important part, thrusting the masses asunder as it ex¬
pands in freezing as effectually as the process is accomplished by the
quarryman’s wedges and hammers, though more slowly. We note also
the fact that the lichens are larger, and evidently better nourished,
than in the case of the first quarry examined, and they are therefore
yielding more vegetable matter to the increasing talus. In the moist
places the mosses are spreading upward from the base of the cliffs ; with
their spongy mass they hold water even in tolerably dry times, so that
the rock is gradually being enveloped in a mantle of their growth. On
the surface of this mass the debris worked from the rocks is constantly
gathering, so that the coating affords sufficient soil material for the
support of many plants, such as our huckleberries and other forms of
flowering vegetation. These by their annual contribution of leaves *■"

232

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

and stems add still more to the increasing coating of commingled rock
waste and decayed organisms.

From the aspect of old quarries to that of natural rock surfaces left
bare of soil at the end of the last glacial period is an easy transition for
the observer to make. On the fields of glacially bared rock, from which
the ice has scraped and rubbed away the debris which once covered
them, we may find every stage of the healing process which takes place
when the solid parts of the earth have been stripped of their soil cover¬
ing. The variety of conditions depends on the resistance which the

rocks present to the agents which tend to break them up and in an im-

portant way on the nutritive value which the broken-up stone has for
plants. Thus it is when the rocks are composed of quartz or other
forms of pure siliceous material which is little affected by the atmos¬
phere, especially where, as in compact quartzites and sandstones, the
stone seems at times to bid defiance to the elements. As in the case of
the rocks of this nature near Sugar Hill, New Hampshire, known as the
“ Thrashing floor,” and the innumerable other instances in the region of
crystalline formations in northern North America, the surface is so
little decayed that it still bears the finer marks of the glacial scratcli-
ings, though, in the thousands of years which have elapsed since the
glacial period, it has had no other protection against the weather than
a thin sheet of moss and lichens which was in the course of time formed
on the surface, (See Pis. in, iv, and xxxi.) A little decay was required
in order to support this thin growth, but the rotting has not been at
all sufficient to remove a twentieth of an inch in depth from the stone.
There are in the aggregate in the northern part of this continent many
thousand square miles of rock of this exceedingly resisting nature,
which, though affording very little mineral matter for the formation of
soil, still has furnished enough to maintain a scanty vegetation. The
fact is that where there is but a small amount of material yielded by the
soil to supply the ashy matter for plants the precious store is effectively
retained by the vegetation, each plant deriving its supply of ashy mat¬
ter mainly from the decayed bodies of its predecessors.

CLIFF TALUS SOILS.

From this condition in which the least possible soil making has been
effected in the vast time which has elapsed since the glacial period, we
may in a region underlaid by rocks of varied hardness, such as the
glaciated region of New England affords, find every gradation in the
measure in which the rocks have been brought into the condition of
soil. Generally the decay of rocks has been great enough to furnish
soil sufficient to maintain a tolerably luxuriant vegetation. But it
happens in some instances that, while the rock breaks up rapidly, the
size of the fragments is on the average too large to permit them to be
used in soil making. This condition occurs where the rock is rifted by
many joints or other divisional planes so that it breaks into a multitude

PRECIPICES WITH TALUS OF ROCK FRAGMENTS PASSING DOWNWARD INTO RUDE ALLUVIAL TERRACES.

This picture is taken from within a cavern arch.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL.

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALER.]

HISTORY OF CLIFF TALUS SOIL.

233

of fragments of considerable bulk. These bits of stone accumulate at
the bottom of the cliffs, forming a steep rocky talus into the interstices
of which the finer matter yielded by decay penetrates below the level of
daylight, so that the plants can not convert it into soil. We may
observe that each of these masses of stone is attacked by lichens which
are doing their fit work; but before they have time to accomplish the
task the surface is covered with new falls from the overhanging cliffs.

Usually we find that near the lower margin of this talus the plants have
managed to stretch the mantle of vegetation over its surface, and
though from time to time rock avalanches invade a portion of the field
thus Avon to the uses of life, the growth gradually creeps up the slope.
With each downfall of material from the precipice the talus rises nearer
to the top of the cliff, until in the end the face of the escarpment is
buried in its own rubbish. (See Pis. v, vi, vii, ix, xi, xii, and xiii.)

The Avay in which vegetation manages to
create a soil on this rocky talus is interesting
and easily traced. It is in effect as follows,
viz: into the crevices between the stones
fall, not only the fine materials washed and
blown from the cliffs, but also quantities of
leaves from neighboring forests or other
fields of vegetation (see Fig. 1). The whole
mass thus formed, but for the fact that it
is lodged so far below the surface that

Soil bearing 'portion

Fig. 1. — Diagram showing the history of a talus, a, bed rock; b b, talus; c, destroyed portion of cliff;

material now in talus.

the roots can not seize upon it, is excellently fitted for the sustenance
of plants. Seeds which germinate in the depths of the rubble die before
their shoots can escape above the darkness. Gradually, hoAvever, as
the talus climbs up the side of the cliff' and the annual contributions of
fragments grow less considerable, the lichens seize on the surfaces of
the stone and add their contribution to that obtained from other sources,
and all the while fragments of rock are decaying and adding to the
accumulation. Finally the fine debris rises to the level of the daylight,
the seeds of the plants of most vigorous growth take root and flourish
in what is really the very rich soil. Not long after the vegetation

234

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

secures a good footliold, the mass of ruin becomes the seat of a heavy
growth of large trees. Such talus slopes, indeed, are often covered by
very luxuriant forests.

The soils formed on talus slopes are generally well suited to natural
vegetation, though for a time they are not at all adapted to the uses of
the plow. The large fragments of rock inclosed in the somewhat
dispersed earth gradually decay; whenever a crevice forms, the roots of
thestronger growing plants send their fibriles into the opening and these,
expanding with great energy as they grow, rupture the mass and so
extend the surface exposed to decay. To conceive of the importance
of this action we should bear in mind the fact that in such a soil there
are usually within the limits of an acre millions of these root processes
searching for every cranny in which they may find nourishment for the
plants to which they belong; no chance escapes them; no sooner is the
slenderest crevice opened than they invade it, and if they find suste¬
nance there they burst the mass as with a wedge. So effective is this
process of external decay combined with the living action of the root
that unless the fragments of which they are composed are very unyield¬
ing these talus deposits are rapidly converted into deep and fertile
soils. They are rarely well suited for ordinary tillage for the reason
that as long as they are stony they turn the plow or spade, but they
are excellent nurseries of timber and admirably suited for the culture
of the grape; some of the best vineyards of the world are situated on
slopes of this description.

It often happens that deposits formed of detrital materials are shaken
down the slopes on which they rest by violent earthquakes. It is char¬
acteristic of regions which are much affected by such shocks that the
detritus at the foot of cliffs is reduced much nearer to a horizontal atti¬
tude than it ordinarily assumes. It is naturally impossible to give any
graphic representation of this action in the case of debris lying on steep
slopes, but an adequate idea as to the efficiency of these disturbances in
moving debris may judged from the fissured character of the field shown
in PI. viii where the earth has recently been broken by an earthquake.

The above description as to the method in which cliffs gradually be¬
come covered by talus slopes is mainly applicable to the escarpments
which are developed in countries which have been subjected to the
action of glacial ice, and to those which have been formed along the
banks of rivers which after a time have worked away from the bases
of the steeps which they carved. There is another class of cliffs, such
as are abundantly found in regions south of the glaciated fields, where
the precipices are due to the fact that the materials of which their
faces are formed are rapidly passing into solution and are borne away
to the streams. In such cases the cliff usually exhibits hardly a trace
of true talus, for the reason that the fragments in their divided state
decay even more rapidly than the firm-set rock whence they are de¬
rived. Such cliffs retreat across the country, leaving at most a tbin

VIEW SHOWING VARIED RATE OF DECAY OF TALUS FORMATION IN TRIASSIC SANDSTONE SCHIST NEAR FORT WINGATE, NEW MEXICO.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. VI

SHALER.]

FORMATION OF SOIL ON GLACIAL DEPOSITS.

235

layer of very liard materials as a sheet upon its surface. V ery often
nothing whatever is left to denote the ancient positions of the escarp¬
ment talus (see PI. xiv).

The study of the formation of soils on rock taluses leads us naturally
to another condition in which soils are developed in confused masses of
rocky matter, i. e., where they form on the waste left at the close of the
glacial period in the regions over which the ice has moved, or in which,
though the field may have been in front of the glacier, the debris it pro¬
duced has been spread. Clearly to understand the work done under the
peculiar conditions of the glacial epoch, it will be well for the observer
to know something of the living ice streams, as they are exhibited in
Greenland, Norway, or Alaska. From the abundant studies of their
action in these and other countries, it has been made plain that the first
effect arising from the presence of these singular masses of solid water
on the surface of any district is to strip away the soil and other inco¬
herent deposits of its surface, the waste being sent forth beyond the
limits of the fi<^Ld by the streams of fluid water which flow from beneath
the icy sheet, or they are pushed forward as by a scraper, or conveyed
in the mass of the glacier to its front and there dropped on the ground
as the mass melts away. When one of these glaciers of to-day has
maintained its front a considerable time in one position, we find there
a heap of stones and coarse sand which has been shoved forward by
the movement of the slow-going streams or carried in its mass and
dropped at the ice front. The greater part of these stones are smoothed
by the ice carriage, and all the matter in the moraine is entirely with¬
out vegetable growth and usually deprived of finely divided rock, such
as sand of small-sized grain or mud, this much divided material having
been washed away by the streams of water which flow from beneath the
glacier or over its surface, these streams carrying away all but the
coarser fragments of the rock (see Pis. iv, xn).

In Switzerland, and most other countries where glaciers exist, they
are now slowly retreating up the valleys they occupy, with occasional
interruptions in which they readvance for a short distance, so that
these frontal moraines are being constantly left to the action of the soil¬
making agents. No sooner is the mass of stones deserted by the ice
than the great army of plants invade it. First comes the skirmish line
of the lichens, which, springing from light spores easily wafted through
the air, seize upon the rough places along the stone. When, as is so
frequently the case, these fragments have too little fine material be¬
tween them to fill the interspaces, the process of soil-making is slow ; it
goes on as in the formation of the rocky talus before described, by the
falling in of decayed bits of lichen, the blowing in of leaves, and the
slow decay of the bowlders which form the mass. As the bowlders are
composed of hard rocks, that by endurance have been able to withstand
the violent disrupting action to which they were exposed in their jour¬
ney in the ice, they break up much more slowly than the fragments

23G

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

formed in an ordinary talus. So gradual, indeed, is the process of de¬
cay that in the case of many of these moraines left in New England
and other parts of the United States by the ice of the last glacial
period, the bowlder heaps have not yet had their interspaces filled by
material to the level where the plants can make use of the debris and
convert it into soil. It is sometimes possible to creep down into the
cavern-like recesses of these moraines and see the accumulation which
is gradually filling the crevices and slowly rising to the surface of the
mass. We may in such places observe that the fragments are yielding
a more or less considerable amount of debris to the soil which is accu¬
mulating in the crevices. A large part of the morainal matter left by
the glaciers of the ice age has in this way been brought into a state in
which trees can find root between the fragments; other portions, where
the erratics are large and enduring, still retain the aspect noted in PI.
xv, but in all of these the process of crevice filling is going on, and in
time all such bowldery places will be forest clad.

•

GLACIATED SOILS.

Where, as is usually the case, the ground left bare by the retreat of
the ice is occupied by occasional large stones which are extensively
mingled with gravel, clay, and sand, all left compactly huddled together
as they fell from the melting ice, the rocky material is very quickly con¬
verted into soil. At first, owing to the lack of vegetable matter, it will
not support flowering plants, as we may see by examining the earth left
bare wherever in an artificial way considerable areas of these bowldery
clays are exposed, as, for instance, in pits whence materials have been
taken for road repairs or in the heaps thrown out from beneath the sur¬
face beside railway cuts. Here again the lichens and mosses, because
of their tiny, easily wafted seeds or spores and their small need of nutri¬
ment drawn from the earth, find foothold and prepare the way for the
higher groups of plants, so that in a few years species with strong roots
occupy the area and rapidly mingle organic matter with the mineral
substances and produce a fertile soil. Such glacial till or bowlder clay
soils commonly have a remarkable endurance to cropping, for the reason
that, being largely composed of rocky fragments, the process of decay
which goes on upon these bits constantly yields to plants the ashy
materials they need, the very substances, indeed, which the process of
cropping tends to take away from the soil. The main difficulty with
soils found on the till or bowlder clay is that the material is generally
rather impervious to water, and the roots of the plants are not able to
penetrate the dense mass. Moreover, they are commonly tilled with
large bowlders, which impede the plow and are often so numerous and
of such great size that it is not profitable to remove them. Yet the
greater part of the tilled land of New England, Canada, northern
Britain, and much of that of the northern parts of Europe has been

PROCESS OF DECAY OF SOFT ROCKS WHICH ARE EASILY WORN BY FLOWING WATER.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. VII

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS,

shaleb.] VARIETIES OF GLACIAL SOILS. 237

won from these bowlder-covered fields. The farmers heap the stone in
great walls or upon the surface of the bare rocks; or where the erratics
are too large to be readily moved they excavate a pit beside each one
and so provide it with a place of burial so deep that the plow will not
touch its top. In New England it is probable that more labor has been
expended in this tedious task of clearing the bowlders away from the
tilled ground than has been given to the contraction of all the roads and
farm buildings of the country (see Fig. xv).

The way in which the pebbles of a gn^F soil afford nutriment to
plants through their decomposition may often be clearly seen in the
stubborn fields where these large erratics abound. Around the base of
these bowlders, which the farmers, on account of their great size, have
been compelled to leave untouched, we may often find a narrow strip of
very fertile earth on which many plants requiring rich feeding flourish
luxuriantly. If the bowlder, as is generally the case, is of some granitic
rock, it slowly decays in the air, and every season sends down to its
base a certain amount of material derived from the crystals of feldspar
and mica, rich in lime, potash, soda, and other important soil ingredi¬
ents; this share of fertile substances which may be shed from a stone
many feet in diameter nourishes the plants which feed in the strip of
earth next the stone. Each pebble in the soil is in a smaller way, but
in proportion to its size and rate of decay, doing the same useful work
for plants. On account of their solidity, due to the fact that only the
very enduring stones survived the rough handling of the ice, they are
rarely riven by the roots; some of these stones are so dense that they
still carry on their surfaces the fine scratchings due to their journey in
the glacier, thus showing that they have not decayed to the depth of
one-fifteenth of an inch in all the time they have been exposed to the
solvent action of the soil. In most districts, however, the greater part
of these ice-carved fragments are so far decayed that a portion of their
substance has already become food for plants, and in time they will be
entirely converted to this service.

Where there is clay enough in the glacial waste to retain a share of
the water which comes to the fields, and too much is not retained, the
progress of soil-making is rapid. Where, however, the water either
passes swiftly through the debris or can not find a passage at all the
formation of a fertile layer is much more difficult and in some cases be¬
comes impossible. In the district formerly occupied by glaciers are
many fields having one or the other of these hindrances to soil-making.
The washed gravels and sands deposited by the flowing waters during
or just at the close of the glacial occupation of a country are often so
permeable to water that they dry out immediately after a fall of rain.
In this case the roots, except those of strong growing trees, can not get
the humidity they need. Moreover, in the long periods of drought the
vegetable matter which may have become mingled with the earth is so
far exposed to atmospheric action that it can not be preserved from
complete decay. Furthermore, the finely divided matter, which alone

238

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

can enter into solution in the water, is constantly being borne clown into
the depths of the earth beyond the reach of the roots, either dissolved
in the rapidly percolating water or carried along in the form of mud in
the downward-setting subterranean movement. By these actions the
formation of a soil is hindered, and many of these sandy areas within
the old glacial region are essentially worthless for tillage. (See Fig. 2.)

Excellent instances of such soils, which are made unprofitable to agri
culture by the extreme eij^Hkith which the rain water passes through

Fig. 2. — Sections showing the two common varieties of glacial detritus; a, bed rock; b, glacial detri¬
tus; c c, fine sand and clay brought up by ants and earthworms. The arrows show the relative per¬
meability of the materials to water.

them, exist in many parts of North America and in Europe in the re¬
gions which lie to the south of the southern line of the glacial sheet, or
which lie within the ice-occupied district in positions where sands were
accumulated during the retreat of the great glacier. Thus on the islands
of Marthas Vineyard and Nantucket, Massachusetts, south of the most
southern line to which the glacial mass appears to have extended, there
are great areas of sand plains composed of debris brought out from
beneath the ice by the subglacial streams of fluid water. The great
plain of Marthas Vineyard occupies an area of about 30,000 acres. The
whole of this district lies in a position where it is near the great
markets. It is free from bowlders, and is thus easily reduced to tillage,
but it has remained since the settlement of the country essentially use¬
less to man, and has so little value that it is not deemed worthy of taxa¬
tion. The material of which this soil is composed is chemically not un¬
suited to the nurture of certain valuable crops, but the mass, owing to
the partial lack of the finely divided materials essential to soils, is so
porous, that all the rain water at once and within a few minutes after
the rain lias ceased to fall passes below the level occupied by the roots.

Other instances of the same nature occur in Plymouth and Bristol
Counties, Massachusetts, and in the southern part of Long Island, New
York, in New Jersey, as well as elsewhere, wherever the rocks worn by
the glaciers have afforded large quantities of siliceous debris. Where
the material yielded to the wearing action is of a limy or clayey nature
these plains formed in front of the ice are often of a more compact
structure, and therefore better suited to the needs of vegetation.

EARTHQUAKE FISSURE IN ARIZONA, SHOWING THE MANNER IN WHICH THESE SHOCKS MAY RUPTURE THE SURFACE.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. VIII

SHALER.]

VOLCANIC SOILS.

239

Quite opposite conditions, those in which the water cannot penetrate
the soil because of the amount of clay it contains and its exceeding
compactness, lead also to an arrest in the process of soil-making. In
this class of cases the roots of the plants find difficulty in penetrating
the tough foundation, and so the area is generally given over to the
mosses, which, owing to the spongy nature of their growth, retain yet
more water, and so the area, unless steeply inclined, is reduced to the
state of a swamp. How and then some water-loving plant of the
higher orders of vegetation may be able to strike its strong roots
through the peaty swamp material and derive some nutriment from the
surface of the clay beneath. Generally, however, they content themselves
with the little mineral matter which the bog earth contains and which
has been brought to it by streams which flow into the morass from the
neighboring dry land.

Although the conditions of soil-making in glaciated countries are dif¬
ficult, the great invading armies of plants which hurried into those
regions as the ice went away have in a wonderful manner subdued the
stubborn fields and covered them with a coating of vegetation which is
on the whole very well fitted for the uses of man. The soils of these
regions have been the nurseries of our race. The Aryan folk, accord¬
ing to the opinion of those who have most attentively studied their un¬
written history, appear to have attained their character in the glaci¬
ated districts in and about the peninsula of Horway and Sweden. Their
name signifies plowman, and they were probably the first people who
used this instrument on the stubborn bowlder- set fields of that part of
Europe ; perhaps, indeed, the first to nurture the earth with the aid of
the plow. Their descendants in Scotland, northern and central Eng¬
land, and by far the larger part of Horth America which lies north of
the Potomac, the Ohio, and the Missouri, have dwelt on debris of gla¬
cial origin. The soils of these once ice-ridden fields are rarely of great
natural fertility, but with labor and care they generally afford a toler¬
ably certain return to the husbandman and endure very well the tax he
puts upon them.

VOLCANIC SOILS.

We now turn to the conditions which control the production of soils
on rocks which have been formed on the surface of the land by volcanic
action. These fields, though occupying a smaller area than those
which have been deprived of their vegetable coating by glaciers, are
much more widely disseminated over the earth. While the glaciated
districts are confined to high latitudes and to certain elevated regions
near the equator, volcanic outflows may occur in all parts of the conti¬
nents, though they are usually limited to the districts which are or
were at the time of the igneous activity near the sea. Although these
fields covered with rock which was once molten are widely scattered
and are usually of small area, some of them occupy regions of thou-

240

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

sands of square miles in extent. In the aggregate they probably
amount to near the thirtieth part of all the dry lands and include
some of the most sterile as well as some of the most fruitful parts
of the earth. The region about Naples and that of the volcanic district
of central France and parts of the Sandwich Islands aiford types of ex¬
cellent soils formed on these volcanic materials ; while in each of these
districts, as well as in the extensive lava fields of the cordilleras of
North America, other plains overlaid by lava beds are examples of the
infertility which may come from volcanic action (see PI. xxi).

The solid matter which a volcano throws out upon the surface of the
earth may be in either of two states. It may assume the form of fluid
lava, which flows over the surface in the manner of streams, filling and
clogging the original river or torrent valleys, or, in rarer cases, covering
the whole surface of the area in which the outbreak occurs with a vast
sheet of molten rock; or the molten matter may be blown to fragments
termed ashes by the energy of the dilating steam escaping during the
eruption; these comminuted bits of lava, which solidify as they fall
through the air, often cover the earth with a deep coating like fine gravel
or sand. In most cases the flow of lava from a volcano is limited to a
few streams which rarely in any one eruption exceed half a dozen square
miles in extent; but it sometimes happens that the escape of lava is not
from the tube-like orifice of an ordinary crater, but the mass of fluid
will pour forth from a long rent in the earth. In this case the volume
of the ejection may be vastly greater and the tide of molten matter
may spread over an area of many thousand square miles. Thus in
Oregon and Washington there is a district containing not less than
100,000 square miles of territory mainly covered by vast sheets of lava,
the product of successive eruptions which appear to have broken forth
from extended fissures. In eastern Europe, in southern India, and
elsewhere there are similar districts of vast extent. I11 the region of
the Deccan, in southern Hindostan, these sheets of lava have an aggre¬
gate depth of many thousand feet and form the elevated table land of
that name (see Fig. 3 and PI. xvii).

The comminuted lava which is blown to fragments by the explosion
of the steam it contains is scattered farther than the lava flows and
often covers the surface of the earth to a depth sufficient to place the
original soil beyond the reach of plant roots. So widely is this ashy
matter distributed and so vast is it in amount that as a means of destroy¬
ing the vegetation of the earth it must be regarded as more devastating
than lava flows. In the great eruptions of the volcanoes of the Malayan
Archipelago which have occurred within the last 120 years the total
amount of this pulverized lava which has been hurled into the air and
fallen upon the land or sea may safely be estimated at not less than
100 cubic miles, or enough to cover the area of a district the size of the
State of Massachusetts with a layer over 6 feet deep. It is not improb¬
able that the total amount of this earthy matter poured forth from the

U. §. GEOLOGICAL survey

tWELEfH ANNUAL REPORT PI. IX

PROCESS OF DECAY IN TALUS FORMATION IN MUCH-JOINTED GRANITIC ROCK, MOUNT LYELL, SIERRA NEVADA,

CALIFORNIA.

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS

SHALER.]

SOIL-MAKING ON VOLCANIC llOCKS.

241

Javanese volcanoes during that time has been as much as 200 cubic
miles. On the surface of the earth it is perhaps safe to say that in the
average each year sees the soil destroyed or deeply buried over a region
of some thousands of square miles in area by the action of these volcanic
products.

Fig. 3. — Successive states of a district where volcanoes are for a time active. The upper figure
shows the supposed original state of the surface; the middle the state when the volcanoes have been
long active ; the lower the condition after their fires have been long extinct.

The steps by which the vegetation regains its possession of the sur¬
face covered by volcanic ejections and proceeds to remake the soil are
essentially like those by which it regains its place in districts from
which it was expelled by glaciation, but the details of the process vary
in some interesting features. When the covering is of volcanic ashes
the effect upon the vegetation depends upon the thickness of the sheet.
In all parts of the field, except upon the flanks of the volcanic cone
itself, this comminuted rock comes to the earth in a cooled state, having
dispersed its heat in the lengthened journey through the atmosphere.
In many cases the fragments are driven upward to the height of from
7 to 10 miles, and it is some hours before they find their way to the
earth. Near the cone and upon its sides there are often heavy rains
of heated water which effectually destroy the plants and seeds of vege¬
tation, so that the country is completely sterilized. A little farther
12 geol - 10

242

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

away these torrential rains are not so hot as to destroy life, and there
we often find the old soil buried beneath the ash shower, but in other
features essentially unchanged (see PL xix).

It is characteristic of volcanic ash that it is generally a very light sub¬
stance and the particles do not cohere with one another, at least until
they are considerably changed by the agents of decay. They are like
the sands which lie on seashores or in dunes. Their lightness is due to
the fact that the bits enclose blebs of air, which are often so numerous
that the fragments will float in water. Under the influence of rain
water the ash easily slips down the steeper slopes on which it lies and
much of it goes away through the rivers to the sea. That which re¬
mains, provided the average thickness be not more than 3 feet, washes
down into the valleys, leaving here and there exposed patches of the
original soil, with the plants, or at least their seeds, essentially un¬
harmed. These remnants of vegetation servo as colonies, whence the
organic life spreads over the sterilized fields. The process of this
extension takes place at rates varying with the nature of the ash bed.
Where the material is of a coarse nature, the fragments of the average
size of a pea, the deposit may long resist the advance of vegetation, for
rain goes through it as through a sieve and plants which depend upon
their roots for sustenance find it too dry for their needs ; the result is
that for a time the lichens alone can maintain a place upon the ground.
In most cases, however, the fragments of which these ash beds are
formed are easily decomposed. Cooling rapidly from the state of
fluid rock, they are often as frail as Prince Rupert drops and are broken
to bits by the weight of the superincumbent materials or by the changes
of temperature in the seasonal variations of heat. Moreover, their
chemical nature favors decay. At first sight the material of which
they are composed appears to be a dark-colored glass, but though
glassy in its general character it usually contains a good deal of lime,
potash, soda, and iron, substances which greatly promote the action of
the agents of decay. The result is that within a score of years this
ashy matter has become compact enough to retain a share of the rain
water, and its materials are sufficiently decayed to fit the field it covers
for the growth of a tolerably luxuriant vegetation. When the ash is
more finely divided, with its particles of the size of ordinary sand, the
water is sufficiently retained and in a few years the plants may do their
usual work of renewing the soil-coating.

So speedy is the decay of this volcanic ash in all countries where
there is a fairly abundant rainfall that the material usually cements
together by the partial decay of its fragments, forming the variety of
soft rock known as tuff. This consolidation goes on most rapidly where
the divided matter falls into a basin containing water, as a lake or the
sea, but it occurs in these cases when the material becomes sufficiently
close of texture to hold rain water in a permanent manner. In any case,
when the mineral matter next to the surface has been mingled with

VIEW SHOWING PROCESS OF ROCK DECAY WHERE THE MATERIAL CONTAINS SOLID PORTIONS WHICH ARE NOT READILY CORRODED.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT

LlttRAK*

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALEIi.]

EFFECTS OF VOLCANIC ASH ON SOILS.

243

plant mold, as always happens in rainy districts, these ash beds make
good soils and some of them are of admirable fertility. The variation
in their fitness for the use of plants depends on the proportion of the
various substances which the lava contains. The range in this regard
is very great. Some lavas are mainly composed of mineral species like
silica and iron, which are relatively of little use to plants; others
abound in the elements which most promote the growth of vegetation.
Even from the same volcano there may be ejections which at one time
afford lavas and ashes well suited for soil-making and at others produce
ejections which are not well adapted for this end. In general, however,
the most fertile soils of volcanic districts, and indeed some of the most
productive in the world, are in these ash-covered fields. In the region
about Naples, where the ashes of Vesuvius and other volcanoes of the
district which at various times in the last 2,000 years have been in
eruption have covered the surface to a great depth, the earth richly
repays the husbandman for his labor.

In the great outbreak of Vesuvius in the year 79 of our era, a sheet
of ashes covered the country over a radius of 20 miles from the crater
to an average depth of probably from nine to ten feet, yet the tillage
of the country seems not to have been seriously interrupted. In fact,
when the ash is of a tolerably fine grain and composed of easily decom¬
posed rock rich in mineral materials, such as are required by plants,
the effect of the downfall during an eruption may be to fertilize the
field upon which it comes. Looking upon the surface of a cultivated
district which has just received such a shower from a neighboring vol¬
cano the appearance is that of utter ruin and desolation. The earth is
smothered beneath the blackish mass of powdered rock which often
levels over the walls and fences and mantles the roofs like the snow
after a great winter’s storm. The material seems the very image of
sterility, and if it were an unprecedented visitation the people might
abandon their fields in despair, but experience has taught them that a
little time will return them a fruitful earth. The ashes, at first very
open textured, settle down into a compact mass or are swept away
by the rain, and when the sheet has settled so that it is not over a foot or
so deep the farmer can by plowing or spading often begin to crop it
again in the very year in which it falls. In a short time the mass may
be better soil than that which was buried, for the older layer has ordi¬
narily been somewhat exhausted by tillage. Owing to the frequent
and usually thin falls of volcanic ash the region about Naples has had the
fertility of its soils maintained better and at less cost to the tillers than
those of most regions which are exempt from such visitations. The
same is the case with the volcanic districts of the Javanese Archipelego,
where these ash falls have been greater in amount than in any other
known district of the world. Very few areas are thought to have been
permanently made desolate by these showers of comminuted lava; even

244

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

where the immediate result has been calamitous, the final result is
usually not evil.

The process of soil restoration on the lava which flows from the vol¬
canic vent over the surface of the earth is usually much slower and
more ineffective than in the case of the areas covered by the layer of
ashes. When the lava stream or sheet has any considerable thickness
it retains a share of its heat for many years after the mass has ceased
to flow; while it is cooling the plants have no chance to obtain a foot¬
hold on its surface. Long after the outer part has acquired the tem¬
perature of the air, the inner portions of the lava retain a great deal of
heat; this causes every deep fissure to send forth an acid steam which
is very deadly to vegetation. If the lava flow is a hundred feet in
depth, as is not infrequently the case, it may be centuries before the
temperature permits the sprouting of seeds upon it. The conditions of
the lava surface when the mass has cooled to the point where plants
can begin their work of soil-making differs greatly according to the
mineralogical and chemical nature of the rock of which it is composed.
In many cases, notably in the Vesuvian district, the rock is easily bro¬
ken up by atmospheric action and soon becomes covered by a layer of
d6bris. Generally the contraction of the rock, which shrinks much on
cooling, leads to the formation of very numerous crevices, extending
downward some distance from the surface; into these crevices and also
into the irregularities of the lava plain produced by the “roping” of the
lava while it flowed, the rock detritus gathers (see Pis. xx and xxi).
The first plants to take a hold upon the rock are usually the lichens.
Their waste, mingled with the decaying lava, soon affords the beginning
of a soil in the crevices and depressions. In these vantage places the
higher flowering plants find root and extend the field fitted for their
needs in substantially the same manner that we have noted when they
operate on a country from which the ice of a glacial period has just
passed away.

The rate at which soils are formed on the surface of lava is, as above
remarked, dependent on the mineral nature of the deposit, and this
varies greatly in different volcanic regions, and even in the case of the
same volcano in flows which occur at different times. Thus on the isl¬
and of Ischia the vast flow of lava from one of the several craters which
spread such wide destruction that the Syracusan colony was abandoned
in the fourth century B. C., the rock has remained for more than 2,000
years but little affected by decay. Only here and there have the labo¬
rious islanders succeeded in gathering enough soil together to maintain
their plantations of vines. This soil, though very scanty in amount, is
of surprising fertility. Many native plants attain to such a luxuriance
of growth that at first sight they often defy recognition. While these
Ischian volcanoes have produced very enduring lavas which have been
little changed in twenty centuries, several of the effusions from Vesuvius
of comparatively recent date have decomposed with relative rapidity,

VIEW OF A MOUNTAIN VALLEY SHOWING COALESCED TALUS SLOPES THROUGH WHICH THE RIVER FINDS ITS WAY BELOW THE SURFACE,

Showing also patches of vegetatio.n beginning to form on the face of the detritus.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL XI

LIBRARY .

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALER.]

ORIGIN OF COASTAL DEPOSITS.

245

forming tolerably deep soils. The rate of decay which permits the
formation of soils on lavas is to a great extent determined by the rain¬
fall of the country in which they lie. Thus, in the arid lands of the Cor¬
dilleras, the lavas of volcanoes long extinct are generally soilless, while
those of the relatively well watered country of the upper Missouri,
though not more ancient, have in many places produced an abundant
soil.

SOILS OF NEWLY ELEVATED OCEAN BOTTOMS. „

The foregoing account of the processes of soil formation on the land
areas, where the accidents of frost and fire or those arising from land
slides or avalanches have deprived the surface of its natural covering,
shows us how swift and effective are the means whereby organic life
wins its way back to the regions from which it has been rudely dis¬
possessed. We have next to consider the rather different conditions at¬
tending the formation of soils on lands which have newly emerged from
beneath the sea. The instances in which this process can be observed are
rare and have never been adequately recorded. So gradual in most in¬
stances is the speed of uprising that the land gains on the sea at the rate
of only a foot or two in a century and the soil gradually extends so as
to cover the emerged surface. It is, however, tolerably certain that in
many of these changes of level the upward movement takes place rather
swiftly, so that in a few years a large area of land is left dry and thus
subjected to the actions which make soils. Thus, at the close of the
last glacial period a large part of the northern and eastern region of
this continent, and probably the neighboring portions of Europe, were
below the level of the sea, from which they emerged in an upward move¬
ment, evidently of a rapid nature. There is reason to believe that the
uprising in the region along the Hew England coast was at the rate of
as much as a hundred feet of altitude in a year,1 the result necessarily
being that a large extent of country newly won from the sea was open
to the incursions of plants. To conceive the way in which they won a
foothold on this surface and reduced it to the state of soil it is necessary
to consider the conditions of the sea floor in the shallows next the shores
of the continents, for it is mainly from such ocean bottoms that the new
lands are won by the process of continental upgrowth.

The bottom of the sea next the continental shores is usually, to a great
extent and to a great depth, composed of matter which has been re¬
moved from the land by rivers and waves and distributed over the bot¬
tom by the action of the tides. Along the Atlantic coast of Europe
and Ho r tli America this deposit forms a broad fringe of shallows the
surface of which slopes gradually from the shores, generally at the rate
of 5 or 10 feet of descent to the mile, until it attains a depth of about 500
feet. Then it descends rather suddenly into deep water. Along with
the material swept from the land, sand and mud derived from ancient

1 See Eighth Ann. Eep. of Director of U. S. Geol. Survey, 1886— ’87, p. 987 et seq.

246

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

soil which the streams have carried out from the interior of lands or
waves have removed from the coast line, there is mingled a large amount
of organic matter derived from the decay of animals and plants which
dwell on the sea and, dying there, give their remains to the bottom.
Wherever this detritus is very rich in lime, as is the case in the por¬
tions of the sea floor on which shell-fish or corals abound, the deposits
are apt to consolidate as they are formed, making loose-textured lime¬
stones, generally with more or less admixture of sandy matter. Where
mud prevails the resulting beds are of a clayey nature and do not com¬
monly become more compact than ordinary brick clays. Where, as
is commonly the case, the materials on the floor are mainly sandy, the
strata which they build remain in an incoherent state, for it is not until
they have undergone considerable changes that pure sands will firmly
cohere.

In most cases all materials laid down on the sea floor have in them a
mixture of ingredients well suited to the formation of tolerably fertile
soils. These they derive in the main, or in most instances, altogether
from the organic materials which they contain. Wherever by some
chance we have had lifted into the air a portion of the ocean floor which
was covered with siliceous sand, it remains for a long time sterile. Such
instances of arenaceous sea bottoms are fortunately rare, and when the
continental fringe or shelf rises into the atmosphere there usually is
enough fertile material in the mass to support plant life, and generally
the mineral matter is suited for the maintenance of a good soil. More¬
over, the substances not being much consolidated, there are no such
hindrances to their appropriation by plants as exists in the older and
more consolidated rocks that underlie the whole earth and appear at
or near the surface over the greater part of its area. Except when
composed of limestone the newly emerged sea floors generally have a
composition which offers no resistance to the penetration of plant roots.

We may obtain some imperfect idea of the process by which land
newly risen from the sea becomes occupied by vegetation by exam¬
ining the areas where the tides have been diked out from a territory
which they have been accustomed to overflow, and the area of sand or
mud flats thus opened to land vegetation. We note that the surface is
at once seized upon by the various spore-bearing cryptogamous plants,
such as the lichens and mosses, which make a whitish or yellowish crust
on the surface. After a short time, when these lowly forms have made
a layer of intermingled mineral and organic matter perhaps a third of
an inch thick, higher species of slender and lowly habit find a lodgment,
and by sending their roots a little further into the earth deepen the
nascent soil. In their turn come the sturdier plants which demand
more nutriment, and in the course of a few years the earth is fit for the
occupancy of forest trees.

In the great plain land of the Southern States of this Union, includ-

TALUS DEPOSITS IN A MOUNTAIN GORGE WHERE THE STREAM HAS SLIGHT CUTTING POWER; LAKE CANYON, CALIFORNIA.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XII

LIBfiAK>

OF THE

'-INIVERSlTy of ILLINOIS.

SHALER.]

CORAL REEF SOILS.

247

ing tlie eastern parts of Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, the whole of
Florida, and the fringe of lowlands bordering the Gulf of Mexico and
the Lower Mississippi, in general all the surface of the region below the
level of 500 feet in altitude, we have a district in which the land has
recently arisen from the waters of the ocean and become soil covered.
In all the lower lying parts of this vast area, say the ground within
300 feet of the sea level, the emergence is so recent that we can still
perceive that the surface usually has the peculiar gently undulating
shape which is characteristic of the sea-lioor. In this part of the coun¬
try it is interesting to observe the process of soil-making on the different
classes of materials — clays, sands, limestones, or various admixtures of
these substances. We note in the first place that the soil on this dis¬
trict is generally thin, a fact which goes to show that unlike the deep
rich earths of other and higher lying regions, it has not been a long time
in the process of construction. Then we may trace the varying degree
of retardation which the soil-making process has met and from the in¬
quiry learn among other things how slight differences in the conditions
of the rock may produce very important variations in the results.

One of the best places to study these southern soils is in Florida, for
in that State the surface varies but little in height or in climate, and
the condition of the rainfall to which it is exposed and the profound
differences in soil are due mainly to variations in the nature of the
underlying rock. In the region of the Keys we have that rare form of
coast deposits consisting of coralline limestone; the islands being in
fact ancient reefs which have been elevated to the height of 20 to 40
feet above their original position. The material of which they are
made is nearly pure limestone, derived from the remains of corals and
mollusks and other lime-secreting organisms which lived on the reef
while it was below the level of the sea. There is in the mass a little
volcanic ash brought to the region by ocean currents from remote vol¬
canoes and a small admixture of various other substances, such as
phosphorus from skeletons of fishes and crustaceans, a little potash,
soda, iron, and other mineral matters taken from the sea by marine
animals and plants and built as fossils into the deposits of the sea floor.
The material is a very good source for a supply of the mineral elements
necessary to insure fertility in a soil. The rainfall is great and the
temperature is tropical, so that the vegetation, when it finds a foothold,
is very luxuriant. But a large part of the surface of these reefs remains
singularly destitute of soil; here and there only do we find a patch of
detritus which is deep enough for ordinary tillage, and this only where
the slope of the ground has preserved in a small area the accumulation
of debris which has been produced over a much larger neighboring
surface.

The cause of this paucity of soil in a region where we should expect
to find an abundant deposit is interesting, and it leads ns to discern a
certain feature of the earth’s history which has generally escaped atten-

248

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

tion. There can be no doubt that soil-making- material of fertile quality
is produced on these reefs with great rapidity. The little there is of
it in the crannies and low places of the rocks bears a luxuriant foliage.
What, then, is the reason for the small amount of the accumulation!
The explanation is to be found in the remarkable purity and solubility
of the lime rock which forms the Keys. It is evident that this rock is
rapidly wearing away; it is everywhere channeled by sink-holes and
caverns, and the water which flows from them is heavily charged with
limy matter. The fact is, that as fast as the rock decomposes and the
bits are appropriated to the soil they dissolve in the water and are
returned to the sea in a state of solution. The result is, that it is im¬
possible to keep the mineral elements in sufficient proportion in the
mixture with decayed vegetable matter to form a continuous soil coat¬
ing. It is only where the deconqmsed rock is washed from a considera¬
ble area of the surface into some cavity that a soil of ordinary thickness
can be formed. If there were 10 or 20 per cent of ordinary sand in the
limestone there would be a solid basis for the soil which would serve to
inclose the vegetable matter, or if the region were in a moist, cool climate
the slower decay of the limestone bits would still enable them to remain
to nourish the plants. In such a climate in the winter season there
would be no process of solution going on, and the rain water being less
heated the solvent action would be much less considerable than in the
summer season, but in this frostless land, where the rainfall amounts to
as much as 90 inches per annum, all the bits of stone which should go
to form a soil are taken into the water and borne away. We shall here¬
after have occasion to note that in other limestone districts the excessive
solubility of the mineral matter, as well as its occasional insolubility,
may alike interfere with the formation of soils.

In the everglade country of Florida we have another type of soils
which, though in part coming under the head of swamp deposits, de¬
serve mention here, though they must be again referred to in a later
section of this report. In the everglades the water on the eastern side
and in the central portions of that remarkable region rises in the late
summer and autumn until it forms a vast lake covering almost the whole
area. When in this extended form this water absorbs a great deal of
lime from the rocks which it covers. When these waters dry away in
the winter and spring they leave a thin coating of limy mud intermingled
with leaves on the surface of the bared earth. This, accumulating from
year to year, forms a peculiarly black dense soil, rich in lime and other
elements needed by plants, and therefore of remarkable fertility. Un¬
fortunately, only a small part of this excellent soil-making material is
retained on tfie land; the greater part escapes to the sea through the
streams which drain the everglade country.

In the central and northern parts of Florida, there are extensive
areas occupied by sands which have evidently been subjected to the
- action of strong marine currents, and in this manner have had the finer

PROCESS OF EROSION OF RATHER SOFT ROCK, THE TALUS FROM WHICH IS INVADING FOREST.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XIII

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UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALER.]

SOILS OF THE SOUTHERN PLAIN.

249

materials, such as clay, removed from them. Here the soils ju*e very
thin because the plants find little mineral nutriment. The siliceous
element is, it is true, essential to plants, but they can not support them¬
selves on that alone. In such places we find scrubby pine trees rising
from an earth which bears little other vegetation. The roots of these
trees strike deep into the earth and thus, occupying a large space,
gather the little they need for their scanty growth ; but the ordinary
annual and herbaceous plants can not endure the sterile conditions.
Moreover, the soil is not only lean, but the rain which falls upon it
quickly percolates, carrying with it to a considerable depth nearly all
the soluble material which might be useful to plants and leaving in
the rainless season no water near the surface. The conditions of this
region as far as its soil is concerned remind us of those which we have
noted as occurring in the washed sands of the glaciated part of the
world. In both we have the surface covered by porous sands which, by
permitting the speedy and complete passage of the water, hinder the
work of making the earth a fit place for plants.

In a large part of the southern lowlands the evils arising from the
sandy nature and excessive poverty of the soil are considerable. In
most districts, however, there is a sufficient admixture of clay to make
it possible for the forests and lower growths to convert the mineral
matter into fairly good soils. It is probable that the whole region was
covered by a growth of flowering plants almost at once after its last
uplifting above the sea; as yet, however, the work of soil-making is
much less advanced than it is in the higher country, where the surface
of the earth has been above the ocean many times as long as the south¬
ern coastal plain.

We have now considered the processes of soil formation where the
surface of the earth is newly exposed to the conditions which create
this covering. We shall now have to undertake a more detailed study
of a typical soil with a view to acquiring a general idea of what we may
term its physiology; that is, the way in which it is maintained in its
essential functions and the manner in which the various processes of a
geologic nature which go on within it are accomplished. In this task
we shall consider little of the chemical work which is done in this
stratum, for the reason that such problems for their understanding de¬
mand a good deal of technical knowledge and come rather more in the
special domain of chemical than within the limits of geological science.

For the purpose of our further inquiry the reader should keep in
mind the general aspect of at least two classes of soils which are
familiar to most persons or may readily be seen in all parts of this
country save those which have been extremely affected by glaciation,
viz, those derived from the decay of the rocks which are immediately
below the soil and those which have been brought into the region by
rivers and deposited in alluvial plains. It is well also to know some¬
thing of the aspect of the glacial and volcanic ash soils, but a sufficient

250

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

idea of these may, perhaps, be gained from the figures which accom¬
pany this text.

PHYSIOLOGY OF SOILS.

So far we have been considering those very general features concern¬
ing the origin and distribution of soils which we may term their physi¬
ography. We shall now proceed to examine into the details of certain
processes by which soils come to serve the needs of plants, the ways in
which their fertility is maintained, and in general their relations to
geological actions. These inquiries should be begun upon that type
of soils which occurs on the older part of the land surfaces, on those
portions of the continents which for many geological periods have been
above the level of the sea, for there alone can we trace in a satisfactory
way the successive steps in the history of a soil. After learning the
history of such a typical area we may then compare the deposit with
the less normal forms, some of which we have sketched in the preceding
pages.

This detailed study of the physiology of soils may best be approached
through a consideration of the forces which operate in the production
of such deposits. It is easily seen that all soils represent the applica¬
tion of a certain amount of energy, which diversely applied constitutes
in the aggregate a vast sum. Soils are composed in part of rocky mat¬
ter which has been broken into bits and mingled with organic matter.
The stony material has been much affected by chemical agents which
have produced an evident decay, and this also indicates the application
of energy. The vegetable and animal waste, which is as necessary in a
soil as is the mineral matter it contains, owes its existence to the special
application of energy which brought the elements of the plants from the
soil and the air into the combinations of life which contribute so much
to the soil. We shall now inquire as to the source and methods of ap¬
plication of these diverse modes of action.

It does not require much observation to show us that the greater
part of the forces which operate on the soil are derived from the sun.
It is clearly solar heat which causes all the movements of animal and
vegetable life; and all the growth of roots, stems, and leaves is evidently
due to the warmth of the growing season. In our latitudes, when the
sun moves away to the south, the share of its radiation to our land is
so far diminished that the growth of plants is arrested and the ground is
commonly frozen, so that all the operations which lead to soil-making arc
for the time suspended. When the great source of power rises higher in
the springtime, all the machinery of organic life and chemical change in
the superficial parts of the earth renews its activity. Thus the depend¬
ence of the soil upon the solar heat for all the actions connected with
seasonal temperature is absolute.

Slightly more extended considerations show us that the rainfall which
comes to any country is also due to the heat of the sun. The waters of

CLIFFS OF SOFT ROCK WITHOUT DISTINCT TALUS.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XIV

SHALER.]

EFFECTS OF SNOW ON SOIL.

251

tlio, sea, 'warmed by the rays from the solar center, ascend as vapor.
Their upward movement is due to the energy which is thus applied.
When these vapors attain the higher regions of the atmosphere, they
are drifted by the winds, which owe their motion also to the same source
of heat, and pass from the oceanic areas to the land, where, if not before
precipitated, the store of moisture descends in the form of rain or snow.
Falling upon the earth, this water imported from the sea becomes a part
of the chain of causation which is in various ways related to the forma¬
tion or destruction of soils. The role of actions is extended and varied,
but it is easily to be understood, and it constitutes one of the most
charming series of phenomena which the earth exhibits to the inquirer.

When the water which falls from the clouds comes down in the form
of snow it descends gently upon the earth and accumulates iu the famil¬
iar covering which winter lays upon lands outside of the torrid zone. At
first and for the duration of a single season the effect of the snowfall is
advantageous to the soil, for it prevents the deeper freezing which is
likely to take jtlace when the earth lacks this snow blanket. The frost
which has seized upon the ground before the snow falls is melted by the
heat ascending from the deeper earth. Often the warmth thus induced
in the soil is sufficient to start the lesser plants into life and even to
stimulate into a certain activity the roots of trees whose trunks and
branches are in the cold upper air. It has often been observed that in
frigid countries, where the snowfall is so deep that it does not melt
away until the summer warmth is well affirmed, the small flowering
plants will blossom beneath the frozen sheet. Released by the action
of the snow covering from the bondage of frost, the soil is free to undergo
the manifold chemical changes which are necessary to bring the mineral
part of its constituents into the state in which they can serve for plant
food. Thus the season of preparation of the soil for the demand which
the roots make upon it is, through the action of the snow covering, very
much prolonged, and the preparation of nutritious matter takes place at
a time when there is little or no drain made upon it. The advantage of this
condition, brought about by the snow blanket, is recognized in the adage,
u Snow is the poor man’s manure.” In this phrase farmers have embod¬
ied their sound observation as to the effect on the open soil which the
winter’s mantle insures.

If the snow vanishes, as it usually does during the summer season,
the effect of the accumulation is altogether beneficial. If, however, the
covering is so thick that it outlasts the time of warmth, so that the layer
thickens from year to year, the mass soon begins to move downward
toward the sea. Even iu a .single winter snow which is deposited on a
steep slope takes on a glacial movement and creeps toward the base of
the inclination, carrying with it the loose materials which lie upon the
surface. Where this action is continued and intensified the effect is, as
we have already noted, the inevitable destruction of the soil. This
glacial movement acts upon the earth’s surface as a rasp, gradually wear-

252

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

in<? .away at first tlie incoherent materials which lie upon the more solid
ground and afterwards the firmer rocks, which it may erode to a great
depth. When the ice sheet disappears it leaves the land bestrewn with
debris of various kinds. The old valleys by which the rain waters were
discharged are greatly changed in form, so that, as in the boreal parts
of North America, the originally well drained surface is to a great ex¬
tent occupied by lakes and swamps or by sandy and rocky fields, on
which the soil-making processes find it difficult to accomplish their work
in a way to serve the interests of higher life. The sharp contrasts be¬
tween the conditions which are brought about, on the one hand by a
temporary covering of snow and ice and on the other hand by the more
continuous coating of a glacial sheet, affords us one of the many instances
in which slight differences in the mode of natural action produce on the
soil as elsewhere the widest variation in effect (see Pis. iv and xvi).

There are only a few places within the limits of the United States where
glacial work on a considerable scale can now be observed, and these are
all situated in the western portion of the Cordilleran region. It may
therefore be worth while to note certain familiar examples of the rub¬
bing action which even an ordinary winter’s snow sheet has upon steeply
inclined portions of the earth, where it lies as a thick covering. If we \/
visit a hillside of moderate steepness at a time when a thick coating of
winter’s snow has just been cleared away we may note in the attitude
of sticks and other dead bits of wood that the surface has been subjected
to a certain amount of rubbing which has urged the fragments down
the hill. Thus we not uncommonly find where a branch, fallen from a
tree, has in its downward movement encountered some obstacle, such
as the trunk of a tree, around which the bough has bent in the manner
of a bow, the two ends being dragged some distance down the hill.
Occasionally we can note where stones, sometimes as large as a man’s
head, have been pushed down the hill, leaving a slight groove to mark
the energy with which they have been urged forward in their move¬
ment. Sometimes, though rarely, this downward movement of the
winter’s snow is sufficient to disrupt small stone columns which have
been constructed upon steep hillsides. Thus, in the cemetery in Au¬
gusta, Maine, where the monuments have been placed on a steep hill¬
side where the snow deeply accumulates, it has more than once hap¬
pened that the slow, creeping glacial movement has broken oft’ stout
tombstones and iron fences which surround graves. This action has
taken place, not in the manner of an avalanche, but with a slow motion
which carried the disrupted objects only a few feet from their original
position. In this way we see how, even in regions vrhere true perma¬
nent glaciers are unknown, the snows of winter give us a very clear
semblance of their action.

On the greater part of the earth the rainfall comes in the form of
flood water or ordinary rain, and as such journeys downward to the
sea. To understand the function of this fluid the observer should trace

MORAINAL FRONT IN EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS, SHOWING THE WAY IN WHICH VEGETATION OCCUPIES A BOWLDER-STREWN SURFACE.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XV

SHALER.]

ACTION OF RAIN ON SOIL.

253

its action from the place where it fell upon the earth to that where it
reentered the ocean. This, at least in a general way, I shall now en¬
deavor to do. When the drops of water strike the surface we observe
that they fall with a certain amount of force; this energy is immediately
due to gravitation, but it is remotely owing to the sun’s heat, which
uplifted the water to the clouds whence it falls. This blow of the rain¬
drop may seem of slight importance, but it is really of great moment.
If we watch any newly plowed held where it is exposed to a heavy rain
we notice that the drops cut the clods to pieces in a rapid manner.
After a single shower following the work of the plow we may here and
there find where a hat pebble or a potsherd has protected the earth from
the assault of the descending water. Each of these sheltering bits rests
upon the top of a little column of soil, which may be an inch in height.
In many countries, as for instance in Colorado, where there are exten¬
sive areas of soft rock, with occasional hard patches of material con¬
tained in their beds, we find that this phenomenon is shown on a large
scale, the columns often being 20 feet or more in height, each capped
by the protecting stone which has preserved its pedestal from the stroke
of the raindrop.

It is to the disrupting effect of this reiterated dropping of the rain
that we must in the main attribute the rapid washing away of soils which
are by tillage much exposed to the direct attack of storm water. If
there were no natural protection against this the soils would be in a
geologically brief time entirely swept away; they would indeed not now
exist as a general coating, but would be limited to certain places of a
swamp-like character into which the detritus from higher lying rocks
would be swept by the floods. From all surfaces of evident slope the
materials would be worn away. Fortunately for the economy of the earth,
a nearly perfect natural protection is afforded by the coating formed by
the stems, branches, and leaves of plants, which along with the debris
from their bodies lying confusedly heaped upon the ground, serves to
protect the earth from the direct action of the falling rain and yields
the water gradually to the under earth.

As soon as the rain drops strike the surface they flow together and
form a thin sheet of water; where the earth is bare of vegetation a part of
the fluid quickly gathers into rills and flows away, rill joining to rill
until considerable streams are formed. On plowed ground this surface
water bears with it a heavy burden of the soil which it conveys away
to the lower lying district and often transports to the greater rivers and
thence to the sea. A large part of this loss of the soil is due to the
admixture of its substance with the water under the action of the fall¬
ing raindrop. In a time of heavy rain a field, if it be much inclined in
its surface, will often lose on the average half an inch in depth of its
soil covering by this action. On the other hand, in a forest-clad country
the rain even where it descends in heavy showers forms no sheet of water
upon the surface; it is all absorbed in the forest bed and thus no small

254

OKIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

rivulets result. The water sinks into the spongy coating, and in that
tangle of decaying vegetation it slowly creeps down the declivities until
it is gradually yielded to larger streams, trickling out along their margins
from the mantle of leaves, twigs, and roots which covers the earth per¬
haps to the depth of 2 or 3 feet. While on a hared field there may be
two or three rivulets formed in a time of heavy rain on each square yard
of the surface, so that the area is quickly seamed by a labyrinth of little
valleys, in a neighboring district having the same character of soil and
a like inclination of surface, but covered by a virgin forest growth, we
may not find an average of one stream to the square mile. This feature
is illustrated in the accompanying diagrams, which are intended to indi¬
cate the contrast. While each of these water ways in the forest is occu¬
pied by a perennial brook fed from the spongy soil, stream beds on the
tilled land are all dry save when the rain is actually falling (see Fig. 4).

Fig. 4. — M:iji showing comparative development of stream beds in a district when it is forested and
when the wood is removed, a, forested state; b, deforested state.

* It is very evident that the difference in the amount of energy applied
by the rain to the surface of the earth in these two contrasted conditions
of forest-clad and bare earth is very great Creeping through the inter¬
stices of the* vegetable coating, rain water may descend the mountain
side through a vertical distance of thousands of feet, moving all the
while so slowly that it does not apply any sensible energy to the soil
covering, while if that surface be deprived of vegetation it may on ac¬
count of its swift motion apply an intense erosive force to the incoherent
soil.

All that part of the rainfall which flows away over the surface tends
to destroy the soil coating, and, as we have seen, it effectively accom¬
plishes this end wherever the earth is not protected by its action. This
surface water, however, represents only a portion of the rainfall ; the
remainder enters the earth near where it falls and is thenceforth, until
it is again gathered into the surface waters through the springs,
mainly an agent of soil construction. The proportion of the under and
surface water, or that which sinks into the ground and that which flows

DRUMLINS OR LENTICULAR HILLS IN EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS, SHOWING THE ARCHED OUTLINES OF THESE DEPOSITS.

GEOLOGICAL SURVFY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XVI

LIBRARY ■

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALEIl.]

ACTION OF GROUND WATER.

255

away upon it, differs very much according to the physical characteristics
of the district in which it falls. In general, the ground water is pro¬
portionately much greater in amount in those cases where the surface is
forest clad than where it is tilled, for in the woods the earth never be¬
comes baked or compact, aud, held in the forest sponge, the water has
ample time to penetrate the soil before it escapes to the streams, while
on the bare ground it slips away rapidly toward the sea. It is a familiar
observation that the soil of a tilled held, especially if it be of a clayey
nature, remains quite dry in its under parts even when its surface has
been seamed by a torrential rain. Where the earth is very open text¬
ured, as is the case with the washed sands of the glacial districts or of
the similarly sandy and nearly soilless areas of Florida, the water, how¬
ever heavy the rainfall, may all immediately penetrate the ground with¬
out flowing over its surface. Thus in the glacial sand plains of south¬
eastern Massachusetts there are often no traces of stream beds over
districts of many square miles in area. It is evident that no water has
flowed over them since they were formed in the closing stages of the
last ice-time, save perhaps during winter when the soil was firmly frozen.
Where the soil is a dense clay, even though it be covered by primitive
forests, the proportion of the water which enters the earth may not
exceed one- third of the rainfall. On tilled ground the relative amounts
of the under and over water varies exceedingly, in a measure deter¬
mined by the character of the rainfall, whether rapid and brief or long
continued and slight. When the surface is of bare rock the amount
of penetrating water is always relatively small in quantity (see Fig. 2).

When the winter’s snow remains on the ground throughout the
frigid season aud the under earth consequently passes from the frozen
state which it acquired before the snow came down, the melting snows
commonly yield their water to the under soil in a larger measure than
is the case with other forms of rainfall. The snow when it gradually
disappears commonly melts most rapidly upon its contact with the earth,
so that the water retained beneath the remainder of the coating has abun¬
dant time to filter into the soil. The reader may have noticed that in the
time of snow-melting the layer generally lies upon extremely wet earth,
and if the soil be of a clayey nature there may be an almost continuous
sheet of water upon its surface. Thus regions where the snowfall is
abundant and persists into the spring-time are apt to get a thorough
soaking of the earth at the time of year when abundant watering is
extremely advantageous to natural as well as to tilled vegetation.

That part of the water which has entered the ground is the efficient
instrument of soil-making. All other processes contributing to this end
depend upon its action in an immediate and complete manner. We
shall therefore have to scan the history of ground water in a somewhat
careful way. When the heat of the sun takes the water of the sea into
clouds in the form of vapor the fluid rises in the distilled form; it has
left behind all the mineral substances which were dissolved in it and is

256

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

in a nearly chemically pure state. There probably remains some trace
of certain dissolved substances, but the quantity of admixture is so small
as to have a scientific interest only and no economic consequence what¬
soever. When the vapor is converted into rain, and possibly while it is
still in the diffused form of clouds, the water is in a condition to absorb
into its mass various gases for which it has a physical affinity. The
measure of this capacity for taking in gases varies greatly and does
not immediately concern our inquiry. It is, however, as we shall see
hereafter, of the utmost consequence that among the gases which this
liquid readily and in large quantities absorbs, is that combination of
oxygen and carbon commonly known as carbonic acid gas (C02) now
termed by chemists carbonic dioxide. This substance exists in all parts
of the air in proportion to its weight in nearly equal parts. Thus in the
atmosphere through which it passes, the rain lias a chance to absorb a
considerable amount of 0O2 before it touches the earth. Snowwater,
because of its frozen state, probably takes in less of this gas and may
enter the earth with comparatively little of the material dissolved in its
mass.

When the water from the clouds, coming either in rain or snow, enters
the earth, it commonly passes through a more or less extensive layer of
organic material in the state of decomposition. From this layer it takes
up a yet larger charge of this gas as well as of other materials which are
of importance in its subsequent work. It probably gains from this layer
an additional amount of ammonia and other nitrogenous substances which
it had begun to acquire in its journey through the air, but it notably
increases its store of carbonic dioxide. The quantity of this gas which
water may contain when it finally enters the true soil is indeed sur¬
prising ; it may amount to several times the bulk of the fluid.

How on the presence of this dissolved carbonic acid gas depend some
remarkable effects which water produces on the soil. The most notable
influence of the C02 contained in the soil-water arises from the singular
increase in the capacity of the fluid for taking substances into solution,
which is afforded by the presence of this gas. Ordinary distilled or
rainwater at the temperatures which prevail on the earth’s surface has
very little capacity for taking such mineral matters as abound in ordi¬
nary soils into solution; it will take up only a trace of lime carbonate or
lime phosphate or of the ordinary salts of magnesia, iron and a number
of other substances which must be brought into solution before they can
be of use to plants. The charge of C02 which water may absorb before
it enters the deeper par t of the soil increases by some fifty-fold its ca¬
pacity for dissolving bine carbonate and manifolds its absorbing power
in the ease of many other substances.

In passing through the layer of vegetable mold and the upper part
of the true soil, in which there is much decaying organic matter as
well as many living roots, the water encounters a set of conditions
which are exactly fitted to provide it with this charge of carbonic dioxide.
In the decay of carbonaceous matter C02 is generally formed in larger

ASPECT OF A SURFACE ON WHICH LIE EXTINCT VOLCANOES; ALSO SHOWING DETAILS OF TALUS STRUCTURE.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XVII

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

S HALEB.]

FORMATION OF CAVERNS:

257

amounts than any other gas. The reader is probably familiar with the
fact that wells and other pits which have been sunk through rich soil
are likely to become filled with this gas, or what is commonly called
fixed or irrespirable air. The presence of this gas frequently leads to
the death of those who venture into such excavations without the
simple precaution of testing the nature of the air by means of a lighted
candle lowered into the pit. Among the many nice adjustments of the
conditions of the earth to the needs of life wo must reckon this arrange¬
ment by which the soil water absorbs a large part of its charge to the
gas which renders it most efticient in its work through the decay of
kindred forms.

It is a characteristic feature of water that its capacity for absorbing
and retaining gases rapidly increases with an augmentation of the
pressure upon it. This may be seen by observing the action of C02 in
a common glass siphon charged with what is commonly called soda
water. This fluid consists of ordinary water into which the above-
named gas has been introduced by pressure. We note that while the
fluid remains tightly inclosed, the gas is not visible; but on opening
the stop cock the gas may be seen rapidly to separate from the mass
of fluid and form bubbles which rise at once to the surface. If the

Fig. 5. — Diagram showing action of soil water in excavating caverns, a a , layers of limestone, easily
dissolved in soil water ; b b, sink holes hy which the soil water enters the cave ; c c, vertical shafts
or domes; d d, horizontal galleries. The arch in the middle entrance is a natural bridge or remnant
of a large cave.

passage is widened the uprusli of the gas will be so rapid and plentiful
that a portion of water will be driven out with it. If the escape is made
gradual the gas will be seen to separate bubble after bubble until the
eye readily recognizes the fact that a quantity of the C02, amounting
in bulk to several times that of the water, has escaped from the vesse-
without sensibly diminishing the quantity of the fluid. By this experi¬
ment it is easy to perceive how great an amount of carbonic dioxide
water, under slight pressure, may contain.

When it enters the under earth and passes thence into the subjacent
rock the soil water, provided it courses through limestone, excavates
caverns which are so well known in many parts of this country. The
soil water gathering on the surface finds its way downward through the
joints of the rocks which it gradually enlarges, forming a vertical shaft
or dome; thence it creeps through galleries to its place of discharge into
the open-air rivers of the region in which the cave lies. At the upper
entrance of the cave a funnel-like depression is formed, at the bottom of
which there is a shaft which permits the downflow of the water into the
chambers below. (See Fig. 5.) These pits are often very numerous and
12 geol - 17

258

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

sometimes seriously interfere with the work of the farmer. If he leaves
them open the beasts of his fields are often killed by falling into the
caverns. If he artiflcally closes the shafts, water gathers in the basin,
frequently overflowing considerable areas of tilled land. The general
aspect of these sink holes is shown in Plate xxii.

When the ground water enters the depths of the earth it passes into a
realm where, with each step of its descent below the surface, it becomes
liable, especially where the soil is wet, to be more and more subjected to
heat and pressure 5 owing to this action it is constantly enabled to increase
its charge of the gases, which aid it in dissolving substances of a mineral
nature. Thus when it penetrates the underlying rock, as it often does
to a considerable depth, the pressure to which it is subjected, due to the
column of water above it, materially increases its capacity for dissolving
limestone and other rocky matter. When it flows back toward the sur¬
face the pressure is reduced — it loses a portion of the C02; and as it held
the mineral matter by virtue of this gas and in proportion to the quan¬
tity which it contained, the dissolved substances are in part laid down
near the surface of the soil. The importance of this action in bringing
upward to the true soil materials of value, which plants could not obtain
by means of their roots, is doubtless very great (See Fig. (>.)

Fig. 6. — Diagram showing one of the conditions by which soil water may penetrate deeply and emerge

as a hot spring, a a , porous bed of rock ; 6 b, impervious layers ; c c, fault.

It is to the ceaseless movements of water through the detrital coating
of the earth, and the consequent solution and carriage of materials
which are brought for the needs of plants into positions where the roots
can feed upon them, that we owe much of the fertility of the earth. It
is therefore desirable to consider another action which, combined with
that just described, still further favors the process of uplifting the nu¬
trient matter of the earth into the levels where the roots do their appro¬
priate tasks. This uplifting effect on the ground water is brought about
by the process of evaporation. When a soil is filled with water as it is
after a time of heavy rain or melting snow, all the crevices of the mass

VIEW SHOWING RAPID DECAY OF LAVA.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XVIII

LIBRARY

, OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHARER.]

EFFECT OF CAPILLARY ATTRACTION.

259

and the spaces between the bits of organic and mineral detritus are
occupied by the solvent fluid which takes into itself a large share of the
soluble matter which the neighboring earth affords. Such a time of
thorough watering is apt to be followed by a season of drought in which
evaporation goes on in a rapid and effective manner; the superficial
portion of the soil water then passes into the state of vapor and disap¬
pears in the atmosphere. As the evaporation takes place altogether at
the surface of the earth, the upper layer of soil becoming partly dry,
the spaces between the grains of the material suck up the water from
lower levels of the earth; this in turn evaporates and as it goes off as
vapor it leaves all the mineral matter held in solution as a deposit in
that part of the earth, sometimes sufficient in amount to form a crust.

It may not at first seem clear that the process of vaporizing the sur¬
face water should cause the lower lying fluid to rise to the upper level
of the soil, but the action may be made perfectly clear by remembering
the kindred phenomena exhibited by the wick of a lamp, which draws
up the oil as rapidly as the flame consumes that part of the fluid in the
upper portion of the capillary tubes formed by fibers of which the wick
itself is composed. Or we may in any tree find a partial illustration of
the same principle ; the sap rises because the evaporation from the sur¬
face of the buds and leaves calls upon the fluid which is lower in the
plant to supply the place of that which goes away as vapor, so that the
whole structure becomes like a great wick in which the water is grad¬
ually drawn upward perhaps hundreds of feet above the reservoir of
the soil. This analogy is satisfactory only in part, for the reason that
at the extremities of the branches where growth is going on a certain
movement of the sap is due to a peculiar action of cells which can not
be here described, but in the body of the trunk the motion is probably
caused by capillary attraction.

The energy of the attraction which the adjacent surfaces of the soil
exercise upon the water may perhaps be more clearly conceived if we
note the fact that if wedges of dry wood be driven into a crevice of a
' rock and then be wet, the water will be drawn into the interstices of
the wedge with such energy that a disruptive effect will be produced so
powerful that it may rive the tough stone asunder. It is in good part
to this capillary process set in action by the demand which the roots
make upon the soil as well as by the evaporation from its surface, that
we owe the ceaseless to and fro wandering of the earth waters. These
movements enable the fluid to gather into itself a great variety of sub¬
stances. In its journeyings it offers the matters it has dissolved to the
rootlets of plants so that they may select the materials necessary for the
sustenance of the individuals to which they belong.

To this capillarity we also owe, in large part at least, the efficiency
with which the soil water attacks rocks, whether those which form the
massive substructure of the soil or bits which are mingled with the
detrital layer. By this attraction of fine interstices of the stone water

260

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

is sucked into its inner parts, taking with it the charge of C02 which
promotes the process of decay. In this manner the soil water operates
continually to break up solid parts of the earth and by the process of
rotting brings them into the dissolved state from which they may pass
into the realm of plant life. Thus the ground water not only acts as
the intermediary between the mineral and the vegetable kingdom, but
it is continually winning new materials to the state where they will
serve the needs of vital processes.

It may well be noted that recent researches on the mode by which
plants take in mineral matters through their roots point to the conclu¬
sion that the process of appropriation is assisted by the excretion from
the underground parts of the plant of some chemical substance, the
exact nature of which has not yet been determined. The true value of
this assistance which the plants give in the process of taking mineral
materials into solution has not yet been ascertained in a definite manner.
It seems, however, safe to say that whatever be the result of further
inquiry in this direction we shall still, in the main, have to attribute
the fitness of the mineral material for the uses of plants to the solvent
action of the carbonic dioxide contained in the water.

There is yet another physical property of water which has a great
influence on its action within the realm of the under earth. This is the
quality by which the materials dissolved in water are evenly distributed
through the fluid. It is easy to observe that when we place any portion
of a soluble substance in a vessel containing water the material distrib¬
utes itself uniformly through the mass; thus, if we drop a little carmine
ink into a glass of the fluid, we note that without any stirring it rapidly
mingles with the mass until every part is alike colored with the dye.
This diffusive action operates in the case of all substances which are
really dissolved, be they fluids or gases ; it acts, as we may note, through
the rapid diffusion of odors more quickly in the air than it does in fluids,
and more rapidly in water than in the case of other liquids.

The result of this process is that whenever ground water obtains in
one part of its mass a particular material, this substance in the state ol'
solution is gradually diffused through the adjacent earth. The process
of diffusion goes on more slowly in the confined interspaces of the soil
than in a mass of unobstructed water, but it nevertheless proceeds in
an effective manner. In this way a small portion of the ground water
which may be adjacent to mineral matter that affords the solution a
substance of a nature to be useful to plants does not retain this matter
in a small compass, but yields it to the neighboring fluid, and so greatly
extends the chance of its coming to the roots of plants. The effect of
this action is also in another way beneficial. When in contact with a
" particular mineral substance the ground water, but for this principle of
diffusion, would take up a relatively large amount of certain chemical
materials and so become poisonous to the sensitive root. If there were
no influences of an equalizing kind at work the soil water would be

PROCESS OF DECAY OF OBSIDIAN OR GLASSY LAVAS NEAR MONO LAKE, CALIFORNIA.

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALER.]

EFFECT OF AIR ON SOIL.

261

locally so diverse in its mineral contents that the plants would not be
able to obtain uniform nutrition. By the operation of the diffusive proc¬
ess the roots have a much better chance of doing their peculiar duty
than would otherwise be afforded them.

The variations in the level of ground water have another important
influence on the soil, for the reason that they bring about a constant
movement of the air through the interstices of the earth. When, dur¬
ing a heavy rain, the openings of the debris are filled with water, the
greater part of the air they contain when dry is expelled ; as the fluid
drains away and the water level is lowered the atmosphere is urged
again into the spaces by the considerable pressure (about 14 pounds to
the square inch) which it applies to the surface. Thus when the earth
becomes dry the soil generally contains air to the amount of from one-
tenth to one-twentieth of its mass. The next heavy rain which falls
repeats the process of expelling the air, and so in succession in .moist
climates, many times each year, the wetting and drying of the earth
pumps the atmosphere in and out of the soil coating. In this way more
than the entire bulk of the eartliy detritus is each season drawn into
and driven out of the soil.

The effects of this action are manifold. Some of them we may profit¬
ably note. The air drawn into the soil serves to aid the roots in their
process of assimilating plant food. Most vegetables can not tolerate
conditions in which their roots are permanently bathed in water dur¬
ing the growing season. This is the case with nearly all our forest
trees. A few species, like the bald cypress ( Taxodium distiohum
Rich.) and the tupelo (Wyssa uniflora), have managed to accommodate
themselves to a permanently wet earth by means of processes from their
roots which give sap in those parts of their bodies a chance to obtain
contact with air. These singular devices serve to show how important
it is for the soil to secure the repeated visitation of the atmosphere.

Another effect of the air on the soil is to promote the process of decay
in the mineral and organic matter of which it is composed. A certain
amount of this change will, it is true, take place beneath the water,
but in general these alterations are far less effective than when carried
on in the air. Thus while vegetable matter, after life is extinguished,
undergoes on the surface of the ordinary humid ground a complete
decay which returns all of its matter to the state of dust or gas, the
same material when buried under water only in part rots, the remainder
continuing for an undetermined time in the condition of peat, lignite,
or coal. The complete decay of this vegetable matter is necessary in
order that the ashy material may return to the soluble state from
which it can again be taken into the plants, and also in order that the
carbon may combine with oxygen and form C02, which, dissolved in
water, gives to that fluid the peculiar power of taking up mineral sub¬
stances on which the utility of the soi l for plants immediately depends.
Moreover, were it not for this return of the carbon to the state of ga9

262

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

the atmosphere would soon be deprived of the material and the leaves
would be unable to obtain the carbon with which they build the woody
matter. Whenever the entrance or exit of the rain is so hindered that
the earth does not undergo those successive wettings and dryings which
characterize ordinary soils, the effect is to diminish the measure of fer¬
tility which would otherwise characterize the deposit. If the limit put
upon the successive uprisings and downsinkings of the ground water
be such as to keep the soil either excessively wet or dry, sterility will
characterize the district thus affected, though it might be otherwise
well suited for the nurture of plants.

* There is possibly a third way in which the penetration of the air
brought about by the alternate wetting and drying of the soil is helpful
to vegetation; that is, the action of certain microscopic forms of vege¬
tation akin to yeast plants. It is now deemed probable that some of
these, lowly forms separate the nitrogen from the air and combine it
with potash or soda, thus forming the nitrates of those substances, of
which saltpeter is a familiar example. These materials are of great
value to plants as affording them nitrogen required in certain of their
functions. Although this element abounds in the atmosphere, vegeta¬
tion can not directly appropriate it, but can do so only through means of
ammonia or combinations into which nitrogen has entered. Unless the
air freely enters into the soil and is frequently changed by an enforced
movement such as the variations in wetness, it seems doubtful if this
process of nitrification can go on. There are possibly other ways in
which these underground movements of the air affect the processes of
plant life, but these which have been given are sufficient examples of
its action. They may serve, moreover, to show how the methods of
tillage, all of which rest upon the plan of stirring the soil, effect certain
of their beneficial results. Plowing, spading, and other modes of over¬
turning the soil are, as unlimited experience shows, essential to the
growth of crops. Although these processes doubtless serve a diversity
of purposes, such as destroying wild vegetation and burying organic
matter which lies upon the surface, the most important effect probably
consists in opening the ground in such a manner that it is penetrable
by the air. The same influence is exerted' in the successive tilling with
plows or other tools commonly given to ground occupied by crops whose
habit of growth makes such care possible.

Besides the extensive and varied work which water, in its free state,
accomplishes in the soil there is a large class of effects of other sorts
due to frost action, that is, to expansion by the freezing of the moist¬
ure in the soil. In all the regions where cold is great enough to con¬
geal the ground the effects of freezing are important. At least half of
the land area of the earth is more or less exposed to this action in the
winter. The measure of the effect is, according to the intensity of the
cold, extremely various. We find that in certain cases the earth is sub¬
mitted to a freezing which may, as in the border land of the tropics,

MARGIN OF A LAVA STREAM OVERFLOWING A SOIL OCCUPIED BY VEGETATION.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XX

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALEE.]

EFFECT OF FREEZING ON SOILS.

263

amount to no more than the occasional and brief congelation of the soil
to the depth of a few inches. Again it may in the frigid district about
the poles cause the earth to remain permanently locked in frost to the
depth of hundreds of feet below the surface, only the superficial soil
thawing during the summer season. As an instance of this permanent
and profound descent of the frost into the earth we may note the case
of the soil at the town of Irkutsk, near lake Baikal, in northern Asia,
where the freezing process has extended to the depth of over 700 feet.
Not only is the depth to which the frost penetrates exceedingly diverse,
but the nature of its action on soils of varied quality is likewise ex¬
tremely different. It will therefore be necessary in a somewhat careful
way to inspect the range of these actions which depend upon the con¬
gelation of the ground water.

IK When the soil water is at any temperature above the freezing point
it is ceaselessly moving at rates of speed dependent mainly on the size
of the interspaces in which it is contained, the successions of rains and
droughts, and the steepness of the declivity on which it lies. Every¬
where it is dissolving and distributing materials and yielding them to
the demand of the roots. As soon as it is seized with frost all of these
numerous functions at once cease to be active, the water changes all its
qualities and becomes a mass as rigid as stone, perfectly inert, not only
itself dead, but locking all the life of the plants in a deathlike embrace.
Thus the frozen conditions mean to the soil the complete suspension of
all that vast range of mechanical, chemical, and vital operations wliich
constitute its physiology. A few of these actions we have already en¬
deavored to trace, but the number of the operations which depend on
the fluid condition of water, and which cease when it becomes solid, is
vastly greater than it is possible to indicate in this sketch.

Although the effect of the soil water while frozen is to reduce the
whole of the detritus to the depth to which it penetrates to an altogether
inert state, the process of freezing and thawing when often repeated
has a noteworthy influence on the conditions of the ground. The ways
in which these effects are brought about are somewhat complicated.
The process of solidification in the case of water, as in that of many
other substances, is attended by the formation of crystals. Save in
snowflakes these crystalline forms are not ordinarily visible in ice, but
often they may be detected by pouring a thin, colored fluid upon the
surface of a block of ice when it is near the melting point. The liquid
will then be seen to penetrate along the planes of the crystals, thus in¬
dicating their presence, which, because of the transparency of the mass,
might not otherwise be evident. The old ice of our northern rivers may
in the springtime often be seen in a shattered form where it has been
swept against a bank at the time when the streams break up. In such
masses we may often observe the massive separate fragments, each
constituting a dagger-like bit some inches in length.

Instructive examples of another effect of frost on the ground water

2G4

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

may be seen where a sharp frost in spring or autumn comes upon wet
clayey ground. The ice is often at that time developed as a thick-set
mass of slender columns, which constitute a bristling coating in and on
the upper part of the soil. Each of the slender bits may have a length
of several inches and a diameter of a quarter of an inch or more. It
often happens that we find a layer of earth and small stones which
originally lay on the surface of the soil uplifted by these crowded col¬
umns to a height of several inches above their original level. With a
little care the process of growth can be tolerably well observed; we
perceive that separate pieces of ice begin to form between the bits of de¬
bris which cover the ground; they grow by additions to their bases due
to the successive freezing of the water which the soaked earth affords as
they form; they shear the earthy matter apart and rise perhaps to the
height of half a foot before the morning sun arrests the process of aug¬
mentation. Owing to the open spaces between the slender shafts the
ice does not hinder the cooling of the water from which they are formed
as it would if the frozen mass were united in the form of a sheet.

It is a noticeable fact that the peculiar species of ice forms above
described is commonly produced only in the autumn, when the ground
is warm and the air cold ; it occasionally though more rarely occurs in
the spring, when a cold period follows one of sufficient warmth to bring
up the temperature to the thawing point. The reason for this probably
is that unless the soil water is moderately warm the frost penetrates the
ground with such rapidity as to form a continuous ice sheet, thus arresting
the growth of the uprising columns. It is interesting to note the sharp
contrast between the condition of growth of this columnar soil ice and
what is known as hoar frost. Hoar frost branches grow by accretions
to their upper extremities from water congealed from the atmosphere;
soil-column ice by additions to the lower end derived from the earth
water. It is also interesting to note that this last form of ice exercises
a considerable overturning effect on the superficial portions of the soil;
although the action is most visible on tilled ground, it often occurs
below the leaf-clad surfaces of woodlands.

The formation of ice similar to that above described but occurring in
a, less perfect way takes place in the interspaces of the soil as far down
as frost penetrates. By this action particles of soil are slowly but vio¬
lently thrust apart and ground against each other so that they are
affected somewhat like grain in a mill. This process extends the com¬
mingling of mineral and organic matter and serves to make the soil
material more soluble. The effect of these frost movements on the soil
are not readily discernible for the reason that they go on in an invisible
realm, but we can easily note a number of facts which show us some¬
thing of their nature and effects. All persons who dwell in regions
where the earth freezes deeply have noticed the u heaving” effect of
frost upon various objects which are planted in the soil. Fence posts
if their bases are not placed so deep as to be some distance below the

SUMMIT OF MOUNT VESUVIUS, SHOWING CONE OF COARSE VOLCANIC ASH LYING UPON LAVA WHICH OCCUPIES THE FOREGROUND.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXI

SUALER.]

EXPANSION INDUCED BY FREEZING.

265

zone of freezing will gradually be uplifted by tlie successive movements
of the soil until they fall over upon the ground. They are dragged up¬
ward by adhering earth each time freezing occurs and the soil is forced
to expand; when the melting time comes the thawing process, begin¬
ning at the base of the frozen section as well as at the top of the ground,
releases a certain amount of debris from the frozen state and allows it
to slip under the base of the post, so that when the ice is entirely melted
away the timber can not return to its original position. The same action
takes place in the case of stones which by natural processes may have
come into the soil. The tendency of freezing is to lift them above their
beds and finally to leave them on the surface of the ground. As we
shall see hereafter this action of the frost is directly the reverse of that-
brought about by the work of plant roots and burrowing animals, which
tend to remove the soil from beneath stones and to accumulate material
on the surface in such fashion as to bury the masses. Where plants
possess long and tapering tap-roots, such as those of red clover and
many cultivated vegetables, the effect of this heaving action is often
such as to throw the plant quite out of the ground. This rarely occurs
to the wild species for the reason that they have adapted the shape of
their roots to meet the dangers which the heaving of the soil imposes.

The expansive movement of the soil under the action of frost is in
good part due to the fact that water, unlike almost all other substances,
has the eminent peculiarity of expanding on becoming solid, the increase
in bulk amounting to about one-tenth of the mass. On level soil the
thrust which this expansion brings about causes an upward movement
in the frozen mass; if the soil is frozen to the depth of 2 feet the rise of
the surface may amount to half an inch or more. When the ice melts
the particles of earth fall back into the place whence they had been
driven. When, however, the surface has a distinct slope, as is the case
with the greater part of land areas, the influence of gravity may lead
to a slight movement of the expanded coating of detritus at the time of
melting in the direction in which the surface inclines. When the frost
passes away the fragments of which the soil is composed have been
pushed apart by the ice crystals so that they are not in perfect contact
with each other.

The reader has doubtless observed the peculiar softness of the ground
after the frost leaves it. This open nature of the detritus is due to the
fact that bits of earth after freezing do not cling to each other as they
did before they were separated by the freezing action. Now, when on a
slope even of moderate steepness, a soil thus made incoherent again set¬
tles into a firm mass, there results a slight movement of the debris down
the slope, which, repeated often during the winter and year after year,
causes the soil in frosted countries where the declivities are tolerably
steep gradually to move downward toward the stream. From obser¬
vations made in northern Kentucky I have determined that on a slope
of 0 degrees inclination a deep clay-loam soil moved dowuward at the

266

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

rate of about 1 foot in from 10 to 20 years. In some cases the creeping
movement is probably yet more rapid, but in general it is doubtless,
save on slopes of great declivity, considerably slower.

An important effect arising from this downward movement of soil is
due to frost action. The amount of freezing is greatest in the upper
part of the soil and diminishes as we descend. The result is that par¬
ticles of detrital matter are shoved over each other in such a manner as
to disrupt them. Something of the same action is brought about by
the growth of roots. These processes of plants are largest and most
numerous in the upper part of the soil. By their action the debris is
pushed apart; when they die and decay, openings are left into which
the soil again falls. Naturally this movement is most considerable in
the direction of the declivity. At the foot of soil-covered hillsides we
often find a brook the banks of which are formed of soil presenting neAiy
cut faces. The freshness of these little escarpments makes it evident
that the debris must be constantly pushing against the stream; were
this not so, the steep faces would speedily break down and become
covered with vegetation. Wherever frost operates it is a most effective
agent in supplying to the streams the detritus which they convey to
the alluvial plains and to the sea. To this action we may in part, at
least, attribute the fact that in high latitudes the debris arising from
the decay of the under rocks generally forms a thinner coating than
in the regions nearer the equator.

Although the effect of frost in hastening the movement of detritus
down the slope toward the streams doubtless in part accounts for the
relative thinness of the soils in high latitudes, something of this feature
must be attributed to the comparative slowness with which rocks decay
in cold climates. In such regions the effect of vegetation on the min¬
eral materials is limited to a relatively brief season, and for a consider¬
ably part of the year all rock decay is arrested by the frozen condition
of the earth.

Not only does the action of freezing water profoundly affect the con¬
ditions of the soil in the ways above mentioned, it is also of consequence
m the economy of the earth in several more remote ways of action, only
one of which is of sufficient importance to demand our attention. This
particular influence is brought about by the disrupting effect which
freezing water exercises on the rocks into which it penetrates. An
excellent example of this action may be seen in any slate quarry where
the workmen set the seemingly solid blocks of stone in a position where
the edges of the cleavage planes face the sky; water entering into the
invisible crevices between the sheets of slate and there expanding, in
the process of freezing, will usually in a single winter open the cleavage
planes so that the flakes may be readily separated. On any cliff, or
even on the rocky summits of mountains, the effect of this frost action
may be seen in the great number of blocks of stone which the winter’s
frost has riven from the Arm-set mass. In the upper portion of Mount

VIEW NEAR CAVES OF LURAY, VIRGINIA, SHOWING THE CHARACTER OF SURFACE IN A COUNTRY UNDERLAID BY CAVERNS,

The depression delineated in the foreground is a sink-hole or place of entrance of the cavern-making waters.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXII

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALER.]

EFFECT OF DISRUPTION OF ROCKS.

2G7

Washington, New Hampshire, where the rocks are scantily soil-covered
and are thus exposed to freezing, the surface is so thickly strewn with
these frost-detached masses that it is hardly possible on certain fields to
obtain a sight of the unshaken bed rock.

The work of frost on masses of stone is by no means limited to that
first stage of their disintegration which consists in riving them from
their matrix. As fast as decay of any kind opens the structures of the
masses the water penetrates into the pieces and in freezing them serves
to break them into small bits. This process is not arrested until the
fragments become so small that they are less in size than the finest
grains of sand. Even where the rock has no distinct joints or cleavage
planes into which the water can penetrate the fluid is likely to soak into
the substance of the stone, and if its elements be not very firmly bound
together the freezing will scale a layer of the material from the outer
part and this thin sheet will readily fall to powder in subsequent proc¬
esses of decay. This scaling process takes place most commonly in the
case of rocks which have a rather open texture, such as is found in some
forms of granite and in most sandstones; it is so powerful an agent of
decay that many stones which in the tropics endure very well crumble
to pieces in high latitudes. An instance of this frost effect is afforded
by the so-called Cleopatra’s needle, an obelisk which of recent years has
been brought from the frostless land of Egypt to the climate of New
York. Exposed to the open air in its new position the process of decay
is going on so rapidly that before the end of the century the stone will
probably be more effectively disintegrated than it had been in 2,000
years in its original location.

In several ways the disruption of rocks greatly aids the action of
chemical agents of decay, which serve to bring rocky matter into the
soluble state in which plants may make use of it. In general chemical
forces act only upon the outside of rocky matter. As the particles of
rock grow smaller the proportion of superficial area to the mass is
increased, and this in a rapid ratio. Thus a cube a yard in size exposes
54 square square feet of surface; if divided into cubes of 1 foot each,
the aggregate surface exposed to corrosive action is increased to 102
square feet. If it is broken into cubes of 1-inch mass, the material then
presents a total surface of nearly 2,000 square feet; still further reduced
to bits of one-twelfth of an inch in diameter, the exposed faces of the
rock are increased until their surface is equivalent to about 20,000 square
feet, or nearly half an acre in area. In the finer bits of earth, such as
compose the principal part of the mineral matter contained in the more
fertile soils, the total area of a cubic yard of rock which in the original
massive form exposed an area of only 54 square feet to the chemical
action which prepares such substances for solution in soil water, and
thus for the use of plants, may be increased until it amounts to some¬
thing like ten thousand times the original area. So far as frost action
aids in comminuting the rock it is a beneficent agent of very great

268

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

importance. The effect of freezing is naturally most conspicuous in the
regions where the ancient soils have been removed by glacial action.
In all the fields where the ice of the last glacial epoch has done its sin¬
gular work of abrasion and has stripped away the ancient soils the
expansive action of freezing water does much to help the restoration of
the earth to the state where the higher plants can be fed. In the trop¬
ical and other districts beyond the action of the frost the process of soil¬
making lacks this aid, but there the generally increased rainfall and
the absence of long-continued frozen condition of the earth which com¬
monly attends frost action serves in part as a compensation for the
absence of this rock-disrupting force (see PI. x).

Before leaving this interesting portion of our inquiry, we should note
the fact that the heaving or interstitial movement of the soil produced
by freezing has an important influence on the ease with which water
enters its mass. The action of gravity in the soil itself, combined with
the weight of the winter’s snows and that of the forest trees .which gen¬
erally cover fertile soils, tends to give to the earth a measure of compact¬
ness which is undesirable. By these actions the soil is often made so
dense that the water does not easily penetrate it; when the frost leaves
the ground, we find, as before noted, that the earthy matter is so open
that it may contain a large amount of water which has found a place in
the crevices formed by the heaving of the mass due to the expanding
ice crystals. In this manner, in regions where the frost penetrates to a
considerable depth, the soil is secured against the evils of excessive
solidification. When the frost departs the ground is left iq a state
analogous to that which is given to it by the work of the spade or plow ;
the slender and weak rootlets whicli plants in the growing season put
forth find their passage through the earth made easy, and the food-bear¬
ing water can easily range through the open-textured mass.

“7 EFFECT OF ANIMALS AND PLANTS ON SOILS.

This division of our task 'concerns that part of the preparation and
maintenance of soils which is effected by the plants and animals that
by their habits are intimately related to the detrital coating of the earth.
This group of results due to the action of organic life is to be classed as
hardly second in importance to those brought about by the action of
water. The influence of organic life on the soil is effected in a variety
of ways, only the most important of which can be here considered. For
convenience, these effects may be classed in the following groups:

First. The influence of organic species on the rocks from which the
soil derives its mineral constituents.

Second. The modification of the soil through 'peculiarities in the life
habits of animals and plants which occupy it.

Third. The contribution made to the soil by remains of the organic
forms which have occupied it.

(1) The first of the above-named classes of action may for the present

SHALER.]

ACTION OF PLANT ROOTS.

269

be briefly dealt with for the reason that it will have to be again eon-
sidered in some detail in the section of this paper concerning the rela¬
tions of the soils to the underlying rocks whence in good part they are
derived. Briefly, the facts are as follows, viz: The greater part of our
rocks owe the measure of their fitness for producing good soils to the
store of nutritive materials placed in them when they were formed on
the sea floor by the creatures which inhabited its waters when they
were constructed. The sediment of which these rocks are composed
contain, in varying proportions, lime, phosphorus, potash, soda, and a
host of combinations of these and other substances which to a great
extent owe their deposition in the strata to the work of organic species
which aided in accumulating the sediments.

(2) The immediate influence of living beings on the soil is exhibited
in manifold ways; of these we shall first examine those due to the
plants. When, as in the case of the lower forms of vegetable life, such
as lichens, the individuals have no true roots, the effect of their growth
upon the soil is purely secondary, i. e., it is due to the contribution they
make by their death to the earth in which they grew and to the reaction
brought about by the C02 which they contribute to the soil water.
When, as is the case with the greater part of the plants which grow
upon ordinary soils, roots exist which search downward into the detrital
layer for their appropriate food, vegetation exercises a great mechanical
effect upon the soil coating. Each root is, at the time of its beginning,
a slender thread-like object, which extends itself through the inter¬
stices, between the bits of debris which compose the earth in which it
grows. At first it has a very slight power of displacing the soil ; when,
however, it effects a lodgment in the crevices of the under earth and
finds sufficient food to warrant its further growth, it rapidly increases
in size and vigor of development. From a slender fiber, having a diam¬
eter of perhaps one three-hundredth of an inch, it may increase to ^>e
a foot or more in diameter, as in the case of our larger forest trees. In
the process of growth the root, after it has gained a considerable thick¬
ness, energetically pushes outward; when it is even as much as half an
inch in diameter it may exercise a powerful wedging action. By the
larger roots of our forest trees the soil is often, in the course of a genera¬
tion of growth, in a surprising manner moved to and fro. The effect
of this movement is to grind the particles of soil against each other and
thus to advance the work of diminishing their size and of making them
more ready to pass into the state of solution (see Fig. 7).

When a growing root penetrates into a crevice in the rocks and ex¬
pands in its further growth, the effect of its action in disrupting the
mass may be very great. We may often find fragments of any kind of
stone which affords plant food, especially those varieties of limestones
of the richer sort, quite interlaced and shot through by the fibers.
Where one of them finds a fissure and enters the mass it is almost cer¬
tain to disrupt it in the course of growth. As fast as decay softens the

270

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

stone and opens little spaces in the planes between the grains of which
it is composed or along its joint planes, the small roots penetrate these
fissures and break up the decayed portion of the mass, in this manner
opening the inner portion to the access of chemical agents which pro¬
mote decay. When the roots find their way down to the level of the
bed rocks which underlie the soil, provided these strata are much divided
by joints or bedding planes, divisions of extremely common occurrence
in most rocks, the roots often find access to these incipient fractures in
which the penetrating waters have already produced a certain amount
of corrosion. Expanding in the crevice the roots which come first break

up the rock and open its structure so that the next which penetrate
may have freer access and extend the demolition. This deep root work
is mainly performed by certain forest trees, such as our walnuts, which
have the habit of sending down a strong tap root which often penetrates
10 feet or more below the surface of the earth. These tap-root trees
have a certain advantage in the struggle for existence, arising from the
fact that they feed in depths whereunto the roots of other species do
not attain, and they thus secure a field where they do not have to con¬
tend for food with a host of competitors. Where these tap-root trees
grow in abundance the soil is generally deep, partly for the reason that
such species flourish best on soils of this description, but in the main
because they are by their habits the most potent agents which tend to
disrupt the solid under rocks and give their fragments to the uses of

SHALEK-]

EFFECT OF DECAYING ROOTS.

271

the soil. As long as the bed rocks lie in a firm-set mass the agents
which serve to rot them have little chance to do their appropriate work,
for, as we have seen, the incidence of decay increases in a rapid ratio
with the di vision of the stony matter. Serving as the roots do, inci¬
dentally, to break up the underlying rocks, they are agents operating
to deepen aud enrich the undersoil. They act substantially like subsoil
plows.

When a district is occupied altogether by forest trees or other plants
having roots which penetrate to no great depth the tendency is to divide
the soil into two distinct layers, the true or upper soil and the false or
under soil. The upper layer or the zone occupied by the roots exhibits
that combination of decayed mineral and organic matter which we have
found to be the essential elements in the construction of soil. In the
lower-lying layer we have the mineral matter alone, which, while it ex¬
hibits the effects of the chemical action of the ground water, is much less
easily penetrated by decay than that which is found in the true soil.
The origin of this under soil is plain: its formation is due to the action
of the agents of decay below the level to which the roots have pene¬
trated; in certain common classes of rock, particularly in limestones,
the chemical decay often advances downward at a much more rapid
rate than the roots penetrate into the earth. Wo may thus have, as is
the case in many parts of the country lying south of the glaciated region,
very deep false or under soils, while the truly fertile layer, owing to the
fact that the roots have not penetrated deeply into it, remains compact
and unsuited to the uses of plants until it is artificially mingled with
the vegetable waste as by subsoil plowing.

If the reader will examine any cubic foot of ordinary forest soil he
will find that every part of it is occupied by the roots of trees; generally
there is not a cubic inch of the mass but contains one or more of the
fibers or terminal twigs of the underground branches of the tree, and
often there is a branchlet of the roots in every cubic line of the mass.
Many of these roots are in a way experimental ; they are sent out by
the plant in a reconnoitering manner to see if a particular part of the
ground affords nutriment; if the search is successful they enlarge; if
they fail to derive sufficient support then they die, and their organic waste
is by decay added to the deposit. It is easy to observe that the open-
air branches of the tree are continually dying and returning to the earth,
though the plant itself may be in a flourishing condition. A similar
pruning occurs in the underground branches of the roots. As these lop
off, a portion of their substance decays and is absorbed by the water and
yielded to other roots. It is indeed to a considerable extent to the decay
of roots that the deeper part of the soil is supplied with the carbonaceous
matter taken by leaves from the atmosphere in sufficient quantities to
maintain the nutritive quality of the detritus. The decaying roots, when
they are of considerable dimensions, serve also another curious function :
as they rot away they leave open channels through the soil which some-

272

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

times extend for a distance of 30 feet or more, and occasionally, when
they belong to the tap-root species, in a vertical direction for 10 or 15
feet. The compaction of the soil which is effected by the outward push¬
ing of the root in its process of growth, especially where the earth has
not been influenced by freezing, often causes these old root channels to
remain open for a long time after the woody matter has dissolved away.
Through these tubes the water finds a path down to the under soil, and
by these means the excess of the fluid is to a certain extent removed as
if by a drain pipe. In an old forest these water ways often serve the
purpose of drainage in a singularly perfect manner, the water finding
its way deviously but effectively from the path of one dead root to
another until it escapes into an open stream.

While the roots are constantly contributing to the vegetable matter
in the soil through their partial decay, the upper branches of the tree
are sending down even a larger share of vegetable matter to decay in
the bed of the forest mold, and at the death of the plant the whole of
its substance returns to the earth. The amount of woody matter which
a single forest tree of moderate size during its lifetime contributes to the
earth is surprisingly great; it commonly amounts to many times the
weight of the living tree at the date of its full maturity. This con¬
tribution of vegetable matter arises from the annual fall of leaves and
the occasional and generally frequent dropping off of branches, and also
from the exfoliated bark, which is considerable in quantity. It is safe
to estimate that in the more luxuriant primitive forests, such as flour¬
ished in the Appalachian district of this country, the amount of this
vegetable matter which falls to the ground each year is sufficient to make
a layer of compact forest mold at least an inch thick over the area
occupied by the wood. Although this process of accumulation has been
going on for millions of years in the region south of the glacial belt, the
sheet of decayed vegetable matter usually does not exceed a foot in
depth, and even in rather moist woods, where the material is best pre¬
served, it is rarely found more than 2 feet thick. This fact shows us
that there is some process at work by which' the layer of vegetable mat¬
ter continually passes away from the surface of the earth.

The removal of the forest mold is accomplished by a simple chemical
process. Woody matter is composed in large part of carbon, which the
plants have taken from the atmosphere, where it exists in the form of
C02. To obtain this carbon the plant breaks the gas into its elements,
allowing the oxygen to go back into the air, while the carbon is built
into the tissues of the plant. The lesser part of the woody matter con¬
sists of various substances, such as lime, potash, soda, iron, silex, etc.,
which the plant has won by its roots from the soil. The process of decay
operates through a simple reversal of the chemical changes which took
place in the formation of the wood. The carbon recombines with oxygen,
forming once again C02, and the mineral substances dissolved in the
rain water return to the soil and are ready to renew their work if taken

SHALER.]

EFFECT OF OVERTURNED TREES.

273

up by the roots of plants. If Ave examine a section through the forest
mold avc may see every stage of this beautiful reversionary process.
On the surface lie the newly fallen leaves and branches scarcely affected
by decay; an inch or two loAver doAvn we find the debris which Avas
accumulated a year ago partly rotted and breaking to pieces from decay;
a little farther down Ave can no longer trace the original shape of the
vegetable matter, and at the base of the section Ave observe that there
is a mass of confused earthy and vegetable matter which shades down-
ward into the true soil, Avhere the roots do their Avork. It probably
requires on the average not more than a score of years for the leaves
and tAvigs entirely to pass back either into the soil or the air, so that
the available matter Avhich they contain is not long kept from the uses
of life.

Fig. 8. — First effect of overturned trees in introducing vegetable matter in soils, a, leaf mold accu¬
mulated in pit. (See also Fig. 3.)

The intermixture of the leaf mold and the mineral matter is in part
accomplished by the action of roots in the manner before described and
in part by the operation of various agents which serve to bring consid¬
erable amounts of the surface accumulation into the soil. This process
of inhuming organic matter is in a measure brought about through
certain accidents Avhich occur to the trees and in part by the action of
various kinds of animals. When a forest tree dies by old age or dis¬
ease its greater roots decay, leaving large openings extending from the
surface to a considerable depth. While these cavities remain open the
rains and winds bear fallen leaves and small tAvigs into them, and thus
a certain amount of vegetable matter formed in the air enters deeply
into the under earth. When a forest is overturned by a strong wind
the trees, unless they be tap-root species, are commonly torn from the
ground or uprooted, and thus it occurs that the soil about the base of
the bole is rended away so that it lies at right angles to its original posi¬
tion. This mass of uprent roots is often as much as 10 feet in diameter,
12 GrEOL - 18

274

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

and contains a cubic yard or more of soil. The pit from which it has
been torn is often 2 or 3 feet in depth. This cavity quickly becomes
tilled with vegetable waste, and as the roots decay the earth which they
interlock gradually falls back upon the surface whence it came, burying,
it may be, a thick layer of leaf mold to the depth of a foot or two below
the surface. (See Figs. 8 and 9.) In certain parts of the country
where hurricanes are of frequent occurrence the amount of vegetable
waste thus buried is considerable.

Fig. 9. — Final effect of overturned trees on soil, a, loaf mold; t>. soil fallen from roots; c, decayed

wood from roots.

By far the greater part of the work of mingling the waste from the
aerial parts of the plant with the soil, at least on the upland districts
of the earth, is accomplished by the action of animal life, particularly
by that arising from the numerous species which burrow in the earth.
So wide is the range of these actions that it would require a lengthy
treatise to consider them in a detailed way. We can only note the in¬
fluence which certain forms exert, and it will be convenient at the same
time to consider some other elfects accomplished by these burrowing
species as well as their influence in introducing the vegetable matter
into the under earth. We shall begin this study with the earthworms,
a group which Charles Darwin has admirably shown is exceedingly ef¬
fective in determining the conditions of the soil.

f In common with many of their kindred which dwell on the sea floors
these vermiform animals which inhabit the soil are accustomed to ex¬
cavate burrows extending from the surface of the earth downward to
a depth of 2 or 3 feet below the light of day. In their up-and-down
journeying the creatures in part thrust the earth aside, but in larger
measure they create the opening for the progress of their bodies by
passing the soil through their alimentary canal. Taking the earth into
their stomachs the process of digestion removes from it such nutriment

SHALER.]

ACTION OF EARTH WORMS.

275

as it may contain, while the remainder, nearly as great in bulk as that
which was eaten, is thrown out as excrement. Every one is familiar
with the casts or dung which these worms are in the habit of deposit¬
ing on the surface of the ground near the mouth of their burrows when
they for a little time escape from the earth. Each of these little heaps
contains a portion of a cubic inch of soil which has been brought up
from a depth of from (> inches to 3 feet. As in single fields there are a
hundred thousand or more individuals of these species to the acre, the
amount of earth brought up to the level of the air is in each year con¬
siderable. In the regions where these animals abound they probably
bring an annual contribution as much as one-tentli of an inch of earth
from the underground to the top of the soil. There is thus laid upon the
decaying vegetation or mingled with it in such a manner as to constantly
bring the organic matter into the buried condition enough material
from the depths of the earth to produce a slow overturning of the whole
soil layer.

Fig. 10. — Diagram showing process toy which a stone may toe buried toy the action of earthworms and
other animals, a , true soil, 18 inches; b, subsoil; c, toed rock.

Although the effect of this action of the earthworms in any one season
is slight, yet when continued for centuries the result is to bury all the
objects of a small size which lie upon the surface to a considerable
depth; ancient implements, such as stone arrowheads which the early
peoples have dropped upon the earth, are soon covered over wherever
the earthworms abound. Old tombstones are gradually buried with the
dust which they commemorate and even the smaller churches of En¬
gland the floors of which were orginally a little above the surrounding
ground, become in time so heaped about by the earth which the worms
have drawn from underneath their foundations that their floors lie
below the level of the soil (See Fig. 10).

The earthworms, as Mr. Darwin has admirably shown, have a singu¬
lar habit of drawing down into their burrows the dead leaves which lie
on the surface of the earth. In performing this work, though they are
destitute of sight organs and imperfectly provided with any other kind
of sensory apparatus, they exhibit a cert ain amount of discretion. They
rarely seize on leaves which from their size or shape cannot be dragged
into the slender tubes which they inhabit, but they select for their use

0RIC1IN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

276

blades of grass and narrow- leaved forms, such as needles of the pines.
The latter they generally lay hold of at the base where several leaves
are joined together rather than at the extreme divergent point of the
bunch, and in this they exhibit a certain amount of intelligence, for if
they did not exercise this choice the fasicule of the blade would catch
at the mouth of the burrow in such a manner that it could not be drawn
downward. It is not certain wliat the end is which these creatures
attain by this curious habit, but it undoubtedly serves to introduce a
good deal of vegetable matter into the under earth,
x) The effect of earthworms upon the superficial detritus would be greater
but for the fact that they rarely inhabit the forested parts of the
country, and moreover they do not live in soils which are of a very
sandy nature. The thick coating of decaying leaves in the woods evi¬
dently makes it difficult to escape to the surface in the manner which
is required by their mode of life and the sandy soils contain too
little nutritive matter to serve their peculiar needs. Where they do
their work they are in many ways useful to the soil; besides introducing
vegetable matter below the surface they greatly affect the earth by
continually passing the mass through their bodies. In their stomachs
they have certain hard parts which probably serve in the manner of a
mill to pulverize the material. Moreover, the secretions which aid in
the process of digestion operate to bring the mineral matter which they
swallow into a state in which it is more readily dissolved in the ground
water and thus put into the service of plants. As in the course of a
century all the soil except its coarser parts is, in a field plentifully oc¬
cupied by these worms, submitted to this organic process the aggregate
effect on its fertility is great. The burrows which the creatures form in
the earth also afford passages by means of which the water enters freely
into the depths of the soil, and as this water settles down it draws in
the air and so aids in that process of aeration which is favorable to the
growth of plants.

The higher insects have very great influence in the development of
soils, though on the whole it is less definite than that of earthworms.
A large part of the multitude of species of this group of animals, par¬
ticularly the beetles, for a considerable period of their life inhabit the
under-earth. This subterranean condition continues while they are in
the grub state, which in certain forms, as for instance in the 17-year
locust, often endures for a year or more. During their tenancy of the
ground they much affect its conditions by their movements and secre¬
tions. Many species of beetles while in the grub state burrow in the
earth somewhat in the manner of earthworms. They devour vegetable
matter and deliver the residue in their excrement to the soil; they often
die under ground, and their bodies are added to the store of nutriment
available for plants.

Certain groups of beetles have peculiar habits of conveying sub¬
stances from the surface into their burrows where they are lodged at
some depth beneath the earth. Thus the carrion species lay their eggs

S HALEB.]

ACTION OF ANTS.

277

in the dead bodies of the smaller mammals and birds, whereby they
provide for their young- an opportunity for obtaining abundant food.
After placing the eggs in the carrion they proceed to bury it so that it
may not be consumed by other animals ; the inhumation also serves to
prevent the too rapid decay of the flesh. As this action goes on in forests
and fields alike and in almost all countries, the soil receives a consider¬
able amount of fertilizing materials which would otherwise be denied it.
^ Several species of beetles seek for the dung of the herbivorous mam¬
mals; this material they shape into balls, in which they lay their eggs.
The rounded masses are often half an inch or more in diameter, and
after these are shaped they are carefully and laboriously conveyed to
vertical shafts which the parent insects have excavated in the earth to
the depth of from G inches to a foot below the surface. In each of these
little balls an egg is laid, the product of which is sheltered and nour¬
ished by the dung, so that the young creature is provided with a means
of subsistence. A single pair of these beetles will in one season intro¬
duce into the earth several cubic inches of fertilizing material.

Although the solitary insects do a large amount of work within the
soil, the principal influence exercised by this class of animals is brought
about by the colonial forms, such as the ants, the ground bees and
wasps, and the termites — white ants, as they are sometimes called. The
greater part of the species belonging to these orders build their habita¬
tions and live the major portions of their lives in the detrital zone of
the earth. They belong in nearly all lands, and are often so abundant
and so active in their work that they much affect the character of soil
in districts which they inhabit.

Of the forms above mentioned the ground bees are the least important.
They excavate small burrows and fill their spaces with their winter
stores, and a considerable part of their bodily and household waste is
healthful to the plants. The shafts and galleries of their abodes, though
generally protected with some skill against the entrance of water, help
to provide the ways by which that fluid may enter and leave the earth.
It is, however, characteristic of the bees that their colonies are never
planted close together, and thus the aggregate effect of their under¬
ground life upon the soil is inconspicuous. It is otherwise with their
kindred, the ants and termites, groups which often exist in amazing
plenty and are found in most countries beyond the arctic circles, where
the soil affords conditions which allow them to carry on their peculiar
life; therefore, to this group we shall have to give somewhat special
attention.

One species of social ant, the Myrmica barbata of Texas, commonly
known as the u agricultural ant,” appears, according to trustworthy au¬
thorities, to have the remarkable habit of clearing away the natural vege
tation, or at least the slight annual undergrowth, from a bit of ground
near its habitation. On this surface it plants particular species which
afford nutritious grains. If the conclusions of the observers are correct,

278

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

this creature is the solitary animal besides man which has invented any
kind of agriculture. Singular as this habit appears to be, it is hardly
more surprising than certain other customs of these curious insects.
Where we find organized slavery and a well ordered system of keeping
other insects, such as the aphides, which secrete nutritious juices, in
well arranged dwelling places about the stems of plants on which they
feed, it is hardly surprising to hear that the ants have come to a state
of development in which they sow and reap. This peculiar relation
of the agricultural ants to the soil is, however, limited to a small area,
and is therefore without much effect on the conditions of the earth.

In general it may be said that the several species of ants dwell oidy
where the soil is of tolerable depth and fertility and where it is at the
same time of a somewhat sandy nature. They avoid the tough clay
because it holds so much water as to menace the drowning of the colony.
Where the soil is extremely siliceous and therefore barren, they avoid it,
for in such very arenaceous districts there is a lack of sufficient food. In
regions where the winter’s cold is great these creatures construct their
permanent habitations so that they may be lodged in chambers at a good
depth below the surface, and thus be protected from the frost. In
tropical countries some species of true ants, as well as the so-called
white ants or termites — which are not indeed ants at all, but belong to
the order Neuroptera — build their habitations altogether on the surface
of the ground. Other species, such as the ordinary black ants of North
America, have their dwellings partly above and partly below the sur¬
face. However varied the architectural habits of these creatures may
be, and the variety in this regard is exceedingly great, they are all
fashioned so as to take large amounts of earthy matter from the depths
of the soil and heap it upon the surface. Thus our ordinary brown ants,
which have their dwelling places entirely below the surface of the earth,
may be seen after every season of rain, and to a certain extent after
periods of drought, busily engaged in dragging up grains of sand from
the subterranean chambers of their dwellings. This mineral matter
they store about the mouth of the vertical shaft which gives access to
the abode. On a field in Cambridge, Massachusetts, observations made
during two summer seasons showed me that the average transfer of soil
matter from the depths of the surface of the earth was in the aggregate
sufficient to form a layer each year having a thickness of at least one-
fifth of an inch over the area on which the observation was made,
which is about 4 acres in extent.

The common species of American crawfish have, in certain parts of
the country, developed a peculiar habit of boring long underground
tunnels in soils which are at once of a moist and clayey nature. These
openings are generally about an inch in diameter and consist of hori¬
zontal galleries occasionally extending for a distance of scores of feet
and terminating at the end either in the margin of a neighboring stream
or in a shaft which extends upward to the surface. These tunnels some-

SHALER.]

EFFECT OF CRAYFISHES.

279

times serve in a remarkably effective way to drain off the excess of soil
water and permit the entrance of air into the earth — a process which,
as we have heretofore seen, is of importance in the interests of plants.
It seems to be commonly believed in the countries where these creatures
abound that they are in some way the cause of the marshy character of
the fields which they inhabit ; the land they occupy is termed erawfishy
and the blame for its over wet condition is laid upon the animals, although
the effect of their action is often so far to remove the excessive water
that the area is forest-clad instead of being a characteristic marsh.

Along the banks of the Mississippi and its tributaries, particularly
those which drain into its principal affluent, the Ohio, crawfishes once
abounded in great number and did good service in promoting the escape
of the ground water from the clayey alluvial soil. Of late the pigs,
which in this part of the country are allowed free range of the forests,
have acquired the habit of feeding on these crawfish, particularly at
the season of the year when they haunt the stream-beds. At such
times pigs may be seen busily occupied in turning over the stones and
drift wood beneath which their prey seek a refuge from their natural
enemy, the water birds, but which afford no protection to these modern
pursuers. The influence of this destruction of these natural drain-
makers appears to be already visible in the increased wetness of many
tracts of low-lying alluvial soil where trees once flourished, but where
they are now dying out from excess of water.

Fig. 11. — Effect of ant-hills on soil, a a , sand accumulated in bill ; b b, material washed from hill,

mingled with vegetable mold.

The effect of this transfer of material from the lower levels of the
soil to its surface is perhaps even greater in the case of the larger species
of the insects known as termites which build dwellings in part or in
whole above the level of the soil. The edifices erected by the termites
are often 10 or 15 feet high and a score or more feet in diameter.
Although composed of earthy matter mainly taken from below the sur¬
face, the hillocks formed by our common black ants which abound in
the temperate regions are not uncommonly from 18 inches to 2 feet in
height and of a diameter of from 4 to 5 feet. In the case of this

280

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

familiar species, tlie earth brought up from below becomes much inter:
mingled with leaves and twigs which may fall upon the hills from the
neighboring forest trees. (See Fig. 11.) As the mass of these bills is of
very incoherent material, it is subject to a constant washing from the
rain water, and so the material is gradually distributed over a wide circle
about the elevation. In some cases the sand accumulated in the hill
amounts to as much as 2 cubic yards in volume and when distributed
by the water it is of considerable thickness over a radius of 5 or G feet
from the center of the hill. Where these structures are numerous, as
they are in certain districts in the United States, by their constant
deposit of matter on the surface of the ground they bury a good deal
of vegetable waste in the soil ; at the same time the animals are con¬
stantly conveying into the earth large quantities of organic matter which
serves them as food and the waste of this, including the excreta of the
animals themselves, is of considerable importance in the refreshment
of the soil.

One of the most curious effects arising from the interference of the
ants with the original conditions of the soil consists in the separation of
the finer detritus from the coarse mineral elements of the detrital layer.
I long ago had occasion to observe that in certain parts of New Eng¬
land, where the sandy soils had not for a long time been exposed to the
plow or agents of tillage, certain fields were covered to the depth of
some inches by a fine sand without pebbles larger than the head of a
pin, while the deeper parts of the section, say below the level of a foot
in depth, were for a foot or so further down mainly composed of peb¬
bles of various sizes with little finer material among them. This dis¬
tribution of materials was not to be explained by the supposition that
the original deposition led to the peculiar arrangement. It was easy
to see that the ancient order of the deposits must have been disturbed
by tillage, but it was clearly accounted for by the action of the ants.
These creatures to the number of tens of thousands on an acre are dur¬
ing each season of activity industriously occupied in bringing the fine
sands and tiniest pebbles to the surface, thus taking away small mov¬
able bits from among the coarser pebbles which they could not manage
to move. It is evident that this process would in the course of a cen¬
tury bring about just such an arrangement of the fragmental matter as
we need to account for. (See Fig. 2.)

In general, the work of ants in the sandy soils resembles that of
earthworms in the clayey ground; both these groups of animals serve
to bring lower parts of the soil to the surface where it is more rapidly
subjected to the decay brought about by atmospheric action. As it is
fine materials which are best fitted for the duties of nourishing plants,
it is an advantage to the plants to have them brought near the top of
the ground, where the roots of ordinary vegetation may seize upon
them. In the work of the ants, however, we do not have that peculiar
effect due to the characteristic habit of the earthworm, which takes the

SHALEE.]

EFFECT OF BIRDS ON SOILS.

281

soil into its digestive ducts. Nevertheless, because they are much
more widespread than their lower kindred, these insects in the aggre¬
gate produce a far greater influence on the soils.

Among vertebrated animals are a hundred species or more which by
their habits modify soil conditions. Although the number of kinds in
the backboned group of animals which occupy the soil is probably not
the fiftieth part as numerous as the list of insects which live for a time
or altogether in the realm of the under-earth, and the number of indi¬
viduals is, it may be, not a ten-thousandth part as great, yet owing to
their relatively large size, the ground-haunting vertebrates exercise an
influence on the soils which is perhaps quite as great as that of all their
lower kindred. This work of the vertebrates is effected in a great
variety of ways : by burrowing in the earth, by storing vegetable matter
underground, by overturning the surface of the soil in a search for food,
I and incidentally by the contribution of their excreta during life and
their bodies after death, they greatly affect the conditions of the earth.

Some of the reptiles have the habit of boring in the earth, but their
excavations as compared with those made either by the insects or mam¬
mals are of small importance. The most considerable work is done by
the various species of tortoises, which generally have the habit of going
under ground for winter quarters, and also to a certain extent in their
search for food, such as grubs. The large tortoise of the southern part
of the United States, commonly known as the gopher, makes consider¬
able excavations, the exact purpose of which are not well known, though
they are accomplished with much labor. All of our serpents find in the
winter a refuge under ground, and although this is generally in some
decayed root or beneath a sheltering stone, the effect on the earth is of
some importance, because they frequently perish in their winter retreat.

A number of species of birds have the habit of burrowing to a certain
extent in the earth. A great part of these, however, use the earth only
as a place of shelter in their nesting time. The prairie owls, commonly
credited with the habit of burrowing, appear usually to usurp the exca¬
vations formed by the so-called prairie dogs. It is not likely that the
owls have any share in the formation of the excavation which they fre¬
quently inhabit. The bank swallows usually build their nests in a layer
below the level of the true soil in places where a stream has exposed a
steep face of the earth. The excrement of the parent birds and of the
young contributes a considerable amount of material to the earth in
which they dwell, and this store of nutriment may be sought by the
roots of the trees which grow in the superincumbent soil.

It is, however, only where the birds resort to some districts for breed¬
ing purposes that, they considerably influence the character of the soil.
When, a few decades ago, the passenger pigeons existed in the Missis¬
sippi Valley in very great numbers, they had the habit of nesting in a
gregarious manner, millions of them occupying the same tract of wood.
This area of timber they possessed for 2 or 3 months while they reared

282

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

tlieir young. Feeding through the forests over a wide range of country,
and often extending tlieir search for food for 20 or more miles in every
direction from their roost, these swift winged creatures, able to fly at
a speed of 00 or 80 miles an hour, supplied their young with food con¬
veyed in their crop and spent the night at the nesting place. The
quantity of the excrement voided by these birds on the ground beneath
the trees in which they nested was very great; at the end of the sea¬
son it often formed a layer of guano-like material over a district per¬
haps a thousand or more acres in extent. The result of this action was
after a few' years to provide the under earth with an important store of
plant food; at times the quantity of this material was so great as to
destroy the lesser vegetation by the manorial salts which, although
of utmost value to plants, can not be tolerated by them in excessive
quantity.

Where these birds resort in great numbers to a shore for breeding
they are sure to contribute a large amount of plant food to the soil. If
the rookery be thinly occupied, as is generally the case with the eider
duck and some other water fowl, the sufficient but not excessive manur¬
ing may produce a rank vegetation which shows that the soil has a
profit from the contribution; on the other hand, if the birds be crowded
together, the quantity of dung is generally so great as to destroy all
vegetable life. When the breeding place is in an arid country, such as
that w herein lie the guano islands of the Pacific Ocean or the Ca¬
ribbean Sea, the accumulation of organic waste, dung, dead birds, egg¬
shells, etc., is so great in quantity that it can not be in any degree
absorbed into the soil, but slowly accumulates and forms a coating
which may in time attain the depth of scores of feet. Although this
deposit can not in its pure state sustain any vegetable life whatever, it
affords in the guano of commerce the very best material for refreshing
soils which lias been worn by tillage or for stimulating plants to very
swift growth.

Of all the vertebrate animals the mammals are the most effective in
their influence on the soil. Some hundreds of species have the habit
of burrowing in the earth and most of these forms spend a portion of
their lives under ground, It would require too much space to trace the
extended variations of this habit in different species: we shall there¬
fore only note its effects in the case of a few of our American forms.
The larger part of our burrowing mammals belong in the two groups of
moles and rodents or gnawing animals. Of these the moles are most
interesting, because of tlieir peculiar ways and the consequences of
their underground habits. The moles include the only mammals w hich
have adopted a purely underground habit of life and which, although
they occasionally come to the surface, are not compelled to emerge from
the ground for any organic purpose. They dwell for the most part in
the upper layer of the soil where they subsist mainly on insects. They
are accustomed to seek their food by extensive journeys through this

SHALER.]

EFFECT OF RODENTS.

283

superficial portion of the earth which can easily be displaced by a bur¬
rowing motion. They find their movements easiest and most profitable
in the layer of soil which lies just beneath the roots of the grass and
other lowly vegetation, for there they can make tlieir way partially by
pushing the earth behind them by the movements of their short stout legs
and partly by uplifting the surface in the familiar ridges which to the
eye mark the paths they follow. A single mole will in one season
break some hundred feet of these ways beneath the sod. Where they
find an abundance of food they will form a network of open passages,
so that the solidity of the earth is materially affected by their action.
Between these selected feeding grounds, in which they wander deviously,
they form longer and straighter passages, utilized year after year in
their journeys to and from their regular haunts.

The effect of the movement of moles through the soil is to stir the
upper part of the layer somewhat in the manner in which this is effected
by the plow or spade. Sometimes for a season this action appears to
harm the plants whose roots are near the surface, yet on the whole the
delving work done by these creatures appears to be eminently profitable
to growth, it stirs the soil about the roots and favors the entrance of
the air.

There is, however, another effect from the mole burrows which is not
so advantageous. We have already noticed the protective action of
vegetation which serves to greatly diminish the erosion accomplished
by rain water upon the incoherent matter of the soil. The mat of super¬
ficial roots and the coating of decaying vegetation makes it difficult for
the water to gather into distinct streams and yields the fluid gradually
to the large brooks. When a mole burrows beneath the layer of mold,
or the roots of the sward descend a steep incline, the water is likely to
enlarge the channel so that it becomes open to the day and may develop
into a deep ravine. In this manner the moles in certain districts favor
the degradation of the soil coating and their action in this regard is
often extensive and important. Owing, however, to the large part
which these creatures play in the destruction of insects that prey upon
the roots of plants, as well as to their activities in stirring the soil and
opening it to the air, their general influence must be regarded as bene¬
ficial.

The greater part of the rodents — an order which includes more species
than any other order of mammals — to a greater or less extent dwell
underground; by far the greater portion of these, however, unlike the
moles, derive their subsistence from the overground vegetation or from
the roots of plants, resorting to the earth mainly for protection from
their enemies or from the winter’s cold. Some of these, as for instance
certain species of field mice, dwell almost altogether beneath the sur¬
face, resorting to the open air only for such food as the plant roots fail
to afford them ; others, such as the hedgehog, habitually resort to their
burrows in summer only for sleep, although in winter they occupy them

284

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

(luring a period of some months. In certain parts of the country,
notably in regions where weasels and other small predaceous mammals
are absent or rare, the species of held mice exists in amazing plenty.
Thus on the island of Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts, the wild mice
are so abundant that brushwood areas, often acres in extent, are com¬
pletely honeycombed by their burrows, and many species of plants
whose bark affords nutritious food in winter are almost extirpated by
their attacks. All these species of rodents which dig underground
shelters have a notable influence on the soil; they drag out the earth
which fills those places and heap it at the mouth of the openings, and
in this way they turn over a great deal of the soil and mingle the vege¬
table matter with the mineral material. A burrow affords an easy and
extensive passage for raiu water, and when the occupant deserts it it
becomes filled with decayed leaves and other vegetable waste, and
thereby much organic matter is mingled with the earth.

The underground habits of field mice serve to hide the measure of
their activities from even the observant eye. A good conception as to
their numbers and the extent to which they may affect the earth may
be formed by a simple observation which can readily be made in any
region where the snow accumulates in considerable drifts. It is the
habit of these creatures to resort to the surface of the earth beneath the
snow banks, especially where these accumulations lie upon grassy
ground. Gathering to the number of hundreds in these parts of the
surface where they are well sheltered from the cold by the thick
non conductive covering, they construct an amazing tangle of bur¬
rows cut in the sod and roofed by the snow. These excavations seem
to be made in a certain order, mainly to procure the food which the roots
of the plants afford. In certain places, particularly in the Berkshire
Hills of Massachusetts, I have observed that, in addition to the narrow
runways, each wide enough for the admission of one individual, they
also make considerable clearings, sometimes as much as a foot across,
which seem to serve as assembling places, where, crowded together, they
may indulge their social instincts and perhaps help each other by their
mutual warmth. Where field mice are abundant the skillful observer
may with a little care in removing the superficial coating of vegetation
disclose the burrows thus formed. These usually lie in the upper C
inches of the earth, and are often so abundant that over extensive fields
no square foot can be found which is not intersected by them.

All the species of wild pigs have the habit of uprooting the upper
part of the soil layer in their search for seeds, nutritious roots, and grubs.
Where these pachyderms abound they turn over the top soil often to the
depth of several inches in a singular way, and by so doing they mingle
decayed vegetation with earth. One individual of this group will in a
year turn over an acre or more of any ground which tempts him to exercise
his strength upon it. Various other mammals and some birds also have
the habit of scratching or pawing the earth to obtain food. Some spe-

GHALER.]

EFFECT OF ANIMAL REMAINS.

285

cies wallow in the mud or in dry soil, seeking thereby to kill the insects
which infest them. Various forms of the larger herbivora have the
habit of resorting to dry ground, which they toss up into the air with
their feet so as to dust their bodies with the powder. The stamping-
grounds of the ancient bison or buffalo of this continent were once fre¬
quent and conspicuous features in the regions which they inhabited, and
the beasts can still be traced, even in Kentucky, from which they were
driven more than a century ago, in the fields thick set with the curious
ragged pits long ago excavated.

While we are considering the beneficial effects upon the soil brought
about by animals which have the habit of conveying fertilizing matter
to the earth or of overturning it, we may note the partly injurious
influence which the beaver exercises in the country where it abounds
through its curious custom of building dams across streams. When this
continent was in its primitive state these rodents, the largest of their
kind, occupied with their habitations the valley of almost every small
stream of tolerably gentle declivity. At each of these beaver lodges
there was a barrier or dam a few feet high which they constructed across
the brook. This held back the waters of the pond, which had an area
ranging from a few square rods to many acres in extent. On the line
of a brook these dams were often placed one above the other in tolerably
close order to the number of dozens. The result was that a great deal
of the level land near the water ways was inundated when the white
man came to the country. Until these creatures were extirpated or
driven to seek secluded places by the incessant pursuit of hunters and
so were forced to give up the habit of dam-building and until the
structures which they had erected had been removed by decay or by the
hand of man, it was almost impossible to journey through many valleys
which are now moderately dry. The influence of the dam-building habit
of the beaver was not altogether prejudicial to the soil, for the reason
that while the swampy places they created were unfavorable to soil¬
making, they served to restrain the descent of the flood waters, and thus
in a measure spared the greater rivers the inundations to which they
were subjected after these industrious creatures were expelled; more¬
over, their reservoirs served to retain the soil materials brought down
by the mountain torrents and thus diminished the waste of the precious
material to the sea.

All the vertebrate animals of the land when they die leave the precious
store of nutriment contained in their bodies as a heritage which is sooner
or later to come to the soil ; in the greater number of cases this waste
immediately goes to satisfy the hunger of other wild animals, but the
smaller forms are generally buried by the carrion beetles and the bones
of all are left to decay on or in the ground. In time these hard parts
are dissolved by the water and conveyed to the roots. The quantity of
nutritious bone dust which is thus contributed to the earth is, when
measured in terms of geologic time, very great. If all the skeletons of

286

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

vertebrates which have thus gone into the soil since the close of the last
glacial period had remained upon the surface they would probably cover
the land with a layer of bony matter some feet in depth, but the return
of this material is so rapid and constant, that it is rare that the observer
remarks the presence of bones in the wilderness places.

Before leaving these considerations as to the effect of organic life on
the soil, we must study the action of certain peculiar groups of lowly
creatures known as bacteria, forms which are classed as of a vegetable
nature and which are in general somewhat related to the ferment of
common yeast. It is only of late that naturalists have begun to inves¬
tigate the members of this group, for they are among the least visible
things of the world; yet it is already determined that they play a
very large part in the life and death processes of organic bodies. It
is now known that they are the cause of most malignant diseases ; they
are also active in the process of digestion. Recently their operations
in the physiology of the soil has received some attention; it has been
found that they exercise an important influence on its economy. Thus
the processes by which the nitrates of potash and soda are formed in
the soil is believed to be due to the action of bacteria. The precise
chemistry of the action is not yet well understood, but this is not a part
of our inquiry. The result is of the utmost importance to the soil
processes, for the fertility of the latter depends upon it to a considerable
extent. In regions of ordinarily abundant rainfall these nitrates, being
very soluble in water, are rapidly removed from the soil. While the
solution is passing by the roots of plants the nitrogenous matter is
seized upon and the rest escapes through the streams or else, by de¬
composition, is returned to the air. When, as in the arid lands of
southern Peru and certain other parts of the world, the rainfall is only
enough to nourish these creatures and not sufficient to leach away the
nitrates, they accumulate and form a deposit so large in quantity as to
be of great economic importance. Like other materials we have men¬
tioned, which in small quantities are very helpful to plants, but in
excessive proportions are very hurtful, these nitrates destroy the fitness
of the area where they abound for the ordinary uses of vegetation.
These nitrous soils are the source whence are derived the salts required
in the manufacture of gunpowder as well as in many other important
arts.

The supposed influence of the microbes in the production of nitrous
soils is a matter of great interest, for the reason that thus far no other
explanation as to the ways in which the nitrogen of the atmosphere
can be brought into this form has been found. Should it be clearly
proved that this important action is due to organic life, it will add
greatly to our conception of its work in the processes of the earth.

In this further discussion of the soil problems it will be necessary
somewhat to repeat the discussion of certain points which have pre¬
viously been considered. As the points of view are different from those

6HALER] EFFECT OF GEOLOGIC CONDITIONS. 287

taken before, it will be better to restate some of the facts here than to
refer the reader to the previous sections of this essay.

We have now considered, at least in a general way, the effect of
animals other than men on the formation and preservation of soils.
Our own species has in its civilized condition invented a set of relations
with the earth the like of which do not exist in the case of any other
being. It will, however, be well for us to consider the effect of human
agencies on the soil coating after we have completed our study as to the
geological phenomena which influence it. In this domain of our inquiry
which now concerns us there remain for presentation the conditions
dependent on the passage of water through the soil and those arising
from the varied nature of the rocks from which the mineral elements of
that coating have been derived. We have also to note the diversity
and character of the earth due to the extent to which the materials of
which it is composed have been derived from rocks immediately under¬
lying the particular area or have been, as is the case with alluvial de¬
posits, brought from a distance by the action of various transportative
agents. These questions wall form the subject-matter of the next chap¬
ter, and will complete our rapid study of the general physiology of soil
deposits. It should here be noticed that so far our inquiry has con¬
cerned only soils whose mineral parts are directly derived from rocks
which lie beneath a given area. We have now to consider certain
classes of soil deposits which are of a different origin.

EFFECT OF CERTAIN GEOLOGIC CONDITIONS ON SOILS.

When the soils of a country outside of the glaciated districts lie
upon bed rocks of gentle slope the mineral materials of which they
are composed have generally been derived from deposits immediately
beneath the surface. Although a considerable part of the soils of the
earth belong to this group of accumulations of nearly horizontal attitude
and therefore of immediate derivation, the larger part of them are more
or less affected by the presence of substances imported from a distance,
and probably much more than half the total soil areas of the earth have
their mineral detritus composed of materials which have journeyed from
afar and so may be classed as deposits of remote derivation. In this
class come all the glacial soils the mineral matters of which have always
been conveyed from a considerable distance. Here we must also place
the whole group of soils which have been formed by the floods of rivers
bringing sediments from the torrent portion of their drainage systems
to the lower part of the valleys in which they lie. All this transporta¬
tion, except the small amount which is affected by winds, is substan¬
tially due to the action of water either in its frozen or fluid form descend¬
ing from the highlands to the sea. This carriage of soil detritus is
accomplished by the action of solar energy, which is applied in the form
of heat in the manner already traced. In most cases this carriage is
effected by fluid water, but it is sometimes brought about by glacial ice.

288

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

GLACIAL AGGREGATION.

When the transportation of rock detritus is brought about by ice and
the materials are deposited in the form of till or bowlder clay, the
result generally is that the mineral components of the soil are in their
chemical nature far more varied than where they are derived from rocks
which lie immediately below that layer, because the ice carriage is
effected under conditions which tend to mingle on a single square mile
of surface the detritus worn from an area of ten or more square miles.
On the other hand, where the glacially transported detritus has at the
end of its journey been assorted by water, as is the case with much of
the drift, the sorting action usually gives a singularly uniform character
to the detritus found in any particular area. We then note that the
material which the vegetation seeks to convert into true soil consists in
the main of pebbles of sand or of clay, each with but trifling admixture
with the others. The result is that the unassorted bowlder clays, even
where very stony, generally afford fertile fields moderately well fitted
for the needs of a great variety of crops and quite enduring to tillage.
These bowlder clay soils are apt to have a fair share of all the elements
which are demanded by plants. On the other hand, the stratified drift,
because it is composed mainly of one kind of rock material, often affords
nothing like the variety of constituents required by varied crops.

In New England, where the white settlers at first selected stratified
drift areas for tillage for the reason that they were not encumbered
with bowlders, it was soon found that such sandy soils, though easily
made ready for the plow, were quickly exhausted and could be brought
to yield fair croj>s only by extensive fertilizing. The greater part of
these sandy soils have been abandoned, and people have resorted for
plow land to the areas which are underlaid by bowlder clay. Such
fields, though stubborn and demanding a great deal of labor to clear
away the bowlders, are very enduring to tillage, because by the slow
decay of their pebbles of varied mineral constitution there is constantly
yielded to the soil something of the substances required by the differ¬
ent crops. The observer readily observes the fertilizing effect arising
from the decay of bowlders in the soil indicated by the belt of exceed¬
ingly fertile earth accumulated in the form of a narrow strip around the
base of the great erratics in New England pastures. We have already
noted this feature in a previous chapter, but it is worth reiterated at¬
tention.

ALLUVIAL AGGREGATION.

Another class of soils of remote derivation is found in alluvial plains
which border nearly all true rivers. The history of this group of detrital
deposits is so important that it should be traced in some detail. To
understand the formation and the physiology of alluvial soils we must
begin our inquiry in the torrent sources of the river and observe what
takes place in these fields where the debris of which alluvial deposits

SHALER.]

ACTION OF TORRENTS.

289

are composed is broken from the bed rocks. In this mountainous sec¬
tion of a river system we find that the slopes bordering the streams
are generally very steep and bear but a scanty coating of detritus.
Owing to the action of frost, rain, the expanding roots of trees, and of
other inorganic and organic agents which aid gravitation in urging
the incoherent mass down the incline to the channels of the stream,
this mountain soil covering is in tolerably continuous motion toward
the torrent beds. When the slopes are very steep the movement is
often sudden, in the manner of avalanches or landslides ; when the de¬
scents are less precipitous the motion is gradual but inevitably to the
same end. At the base of the converging slopes which form both
sides of the mountain valley the torrent is ready with its swift currents
flowing down the steep slope to seize on all the detritus which is brought
within its grasp ; it urges the d6bris downward to the lower levels of
the country. Unless the fragments of stone are very large they are
hurried down the declivities in the times when heavy rains have swollen
the brooks ; beating against each other and against the rocky bed and
sides of the channel the debris is constantly reduced to fragments of
smaller size and thus becomes more readily transportable. In nearly
all cases, however, the diminution in the size of the fragments is less
rapidly brought about than is the reduction of the carrying power of
the stream, which diminishes with the decline in the declivity of the
descent. It is asserted by those who have carefully studied the subject
that the capacity of a stream for conveying fragments of stone is in
proportion to the sixth power of its velocity; although this is perhaps
an excessive estimate, it will serve to show how rapid is the diminution
in the ability of a stream to convey coarse detritus when its current is
much slackened. (See Fig. 17 and Pis. xxinuind xiv.)

As the torrent emerges from the higher parts of the mountain district,
where its rate of descent has generally been from 100 to 500 feet to the
mile, and comes among the foothills of the range its fall usually dimin¬
ishes to from 20 to 50 feet to the mile. The consequence is that the
speed of flow of the water is rapidly slackened and it can no longer urge
forward stones which it easily bowled down the steeper slopes whence
they were riven.

We can note the growing incapacity of the stream to dispose of the
debris which it bears if we follow down any mountain torrent until its
waters pass out upon the plain land where lies the river system into
which it discharges. In the steeply descending portions of its upper
path there is no margin or border of debris which is at rest on either
side of the stream. Except here and there where some large mass of
rock has become wedged in a narrow channel,- all the materials on the
mountain slopes and in the bed of the torrent are in times of flood in
more or less motion toward the lower levels. When in descending we
come to where the valley widens and the speed of the waters is lessened
we notice that the larger stones even in the flooded state of the brooks
12 geol - 19

290

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

are left stranded on the side of the channel where the current is less
swift. If there be space for the accumulation between the stream and
the neighboring steeps these fragments that are too large for the current
to carry onward will form a little margin or terrace, the surface of which
speedily becomes occupied by vegetation. Examining this mass, we
find that it is essentially composed of large stones more or less rounded,
the interstices to a certain extent filled with smaller pebbles and sand.
This finer material has been lodged in the spaces when the waters have
risen above the surface of the rough plain. (See Fig. 12 and PI. xxv.)

Following down the stream, which, owing to the constant lessening
in its rate of fall, is rapidly diminishing in the energy of its flow, we find
that these detrital plains usually increase in extent, and are composed
of finer and finer materials the farther we pass from the torrential system.
When we attain to the true river section of the drainage where the

Fig. 12. — Section through the coarse alluvium formed beside a torrent bed. a , terrace.

stream flows smoothly with a descent of from 0 to 18 inches in a mile,
the alluvial plains usually widen and exist on both sides of the channel:
here we find the debris to consist of very fine gravel, coarse sand, and
clay, the latter being in relatively small proportion. If the lesser river
finally passes into one of the greater streams, such as the Mississippi,
we observe that there is a progressive diminution of slope as we approach
the sea until the decline amounts to no more than about half a foot to
the mile. In this part of the river system the alluvial fields are very
wide and the detritus of which they are composed is very fine grained,
the greater part of it almost impalpable mud, and the few pebbles which
occur rarely in size exceed a tenth of an inch in diameter. (See Figs. 13
and 14, and PI. xxvi.)

The student who is observing the alluvial plains quickly notices that
these masses of detrital materials are in constant course of destruction
and renovation through the action of the river which built them. On
the convex side of the groat sweeping curves through which the stream
marches the speed of the water is slackened and a portion of the sedi¬
ment held in solution is laid down in the shallow water next the shore.
Generally this debris is deposited in time of flood in the spring of
the year. No sooner do the waters recede than certain plants of
swift growth, which find their appropriate conditions on the verge of
the river, extend their roots through it and cover it with their thick-set

BROAD ALLUVIAL VALLEY IN A MOUNTAINOUS DISTRICT, THE AREA PARTLY IMPROVED BY IRRIGATION DITCHES.

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UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS

S HALER.]

AKEA OF ALLUVIAL SOILS.

291

stems, and tlius bind tlie new-made land firmly together. By this ac¬
tion a single flood may add a strip of land to the margin of the convex
shore having the width of some score of feet, a length of several miles,
and a depth of a foot or more. The next rise of the waters may find
the willows, cottonwoods, and other water-loving plants growing
thickly over the surface of the new-formed ground. The turbid water
entangled among the stems has its current slackened, and another de¬
posit of alluvium is laid down. Thus in the course of ten years the ter¬
race may have risen to the height of 10 or 15 feet, and may be so far
united to the general mass of the river plain that the process of its
growth and its recent origin are not discernible. (See Fig. 14.)

When land is making on the convex side of the bank where the cur¬
rent is relatively slow, it is commonly wasting on the opposite side of
the river against which the stream is impinging with swifter motion.
Here it cuts away the alluvial matter which it has laid down in some
previous state of its history. As the material falls into the flood many
of the fragments formerly deposited because they were too large to be
carried any farther in the waters at the speed attained may be ob¬
served to fall to pieces, owing to the chemical decay which has come

Fig. 13. — Soctiou across a river valley showing terraces of alluvium, a a, hed rocks; b b, upper older
terraces ; c e, lower newer terraces ; d, low- water level of river.

upon them during their repose in the alluvial plain. Much of the finer
matter is so far oxidized that it can readily be taken into solution and
borne away to the sea. The insoluble fragments are carried farther
down stream until they attain a place like that before described, where
they may again be built into the terrace. In this manner, cutting away
the alluvium in one place and building into the bank at another, the
river gradually swings to and fro over the whole width of the valley
floor, slowly but continually destroying and rebuilding its marginal
plain. Inasmuch, however, as in most cases the stream is steadily deep¬
ening its bed, portions of the old plain are occasionally left on the side
of the valley above the level to which floods attain; sometimes these
terraces lie at a considerable height above the latest level of the water,
even in its time of flood. (See Figs. 13 and 14.)

The total area of these alluvial soils on this continent is probably over
200,000 square miles; of this the greater part is subjected to occasional
overflows, not sufficient to destroy its value for tillage, and a small por¬
tion, perhaps one-tenth of the whole, consists of terraces not liable to
inundations. The physical conditions of this interesting class of soils
formed on alluvial plains are peculiar. Like glacial deposits, they fall

292

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

iuto the class of materials which we have termed of remote derivation,
that is, they are, for tlieir mineral ingredients, not dependent on the bed
rocks which underlie them, but are in this regard conditioned by the
nature of the deposits in the upstream districts whence the river drains.
In any one acre of alluvial soil on the banks of the lower Mississippi we
may reasonably believe to lie some bits of matter which have been derived
from every considerable held of the surface drained by the river above
the point where the deposit lies. Thus, as regards their mineral mate¬
rials, and to a certain extent also as regards their organic matter, river
deposits are more composite in their nature than those originating in
any other manner. Like glacial soils, they represent the waste from over
a considerable area, but for the reason that the ice sheet, at least in its
continental form, moved in a somewhat rectilinear manner while the
streams of fluid water flow convergingly, alluvial plains have generally
drawn waste from a far wider held than the glacial accumulations (see
Fig. 14).

While glacial waste, owing to the lack of oxidizing agents in the ice
or in the water which is produced by its melting, is generally unde¬
cayed, the material deposited by the river is usually somewhat advanced
in decomposition when it is laid down. The conditions of this deposi¬
tion tend to bring about a mingling with the mass of mineral matter of
much vegetable and some animal waste. These interbedded organic
materials, as we have already seen, serve greatly to promote the changes
which lead to the solution of mineral matter in water, and its appropri¬
ation by the roots of plants. We may indeed consider these deposits of
river -borne waste as admirable natural laboratories in which the great
work of dissolving mineral substances is carried on. The gases en¬
gendered by the decay of organic materials favors this rotting action,
and the porous character of the deposit permits the rainwater to pass
freely through it. By so passing the water brings the soluble materials
into a condition in which they may be appropriated by plants or flow
forth with the drainage into the neighboring stream and thence to the
sea.

Alluvial soils, at least when first subjugated, have in general a high
average fertility. The variety in this regard is greatest in the deposits
formed beside the banks in the headwater district of a river system, for
in these situations the local peculiarities of rock in particular districts
have a dominating influence on the chemical nature of the mineral

VIEW OF A MOUNTAIN VALLEY. SHOWING THE BEGINNINGS OF THE RIVER ALLUVIAL PLAINS.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXIV

8HALER.]

ACTION OF RAIN WATER ON SOILS.

293

elements of which the terraces are composed. In such an alluvial dis¬
trict as that of the Lower Mississippi, where the detritus represents an
average of the waste from the whole of the great valley, there is
naturally a greater uniformity in the character of the materials ; yet
even in this district there is a certain diversity due to the sediments
brought in by the tributaries which join the main stream near the site
occupied by the alluvial fields.

Soils of this nature are also liable to modifications due to a variety of L,
special conditions. Where covered by vegetation, as is usually the case,
and where visited by floods in the rainy season of each year, the current
of the turbid water, having been checked by the resistance which the
friction of the vegetation offers to its motion, deposits a layer of fine
mud on the surface and thus affords refreshment to the soil. When a
similar flood passes over open lands the motion may remain so swift
that the most of the fertilizing matter suspended in the water will be
carried forward, and only the coarse sand deposited, which is of little
value to plants. In general, however, alluvial lands have proved them¬
selves to be the most continually and largely productive of all the soils
which have long been taxed by tillage. This endurance to the demands
of agriculture is doubtless to be attributed to the great depth of the
thoroughly oxidized materials which compose these deposits, to their hor¬
izontal position, which insures them against the risk of washing away,
and to the fertilizing inundations which frequently visit then.

We shall now turn somewhat aside to consider the action of the water,
which, after performing the important underground work which we have
traced in preceding chapters, escapes from the soil, joins the streams,
and passes in them to the sea. We have seen that all organic life de-
pends upon the peculiar capacity which water has for taking a great
variety of substances into solution. It is hardly too much to say that
the truly vital parts of animals and plants are solutions containing that
portion of the soil which is in condition to enter into living forms. The
frames of such animals are built up of material which lias passed or is
ready to pass into the dissolved state. The insoluble portion of the
soil mass is essentially without effect on life, except as a reservoir of
water and a laboratory where the materials are preparing for the state
in which they may be vitalized.

• When rain water departs from the soil it bears away with it more or
less mineral matter. Evidence of this may be had by the simple ex¬
periment of completely evaporating a pint of water taken from the rain
before it has touched the earth, and at the same time another equal
quantity from any spring which drains from an ordinary soil. At the
end of the experiment we find tlia-t the rain water leaves little or no
residuum except possibly a few bits of matter which, floating as dust
in the air, has been caught in the falling drops, while the soil water leaves
a layer of sediment on the bottom of the vessel. Analysis shows this
material to have been derived from substances in the soil. A familiar

294

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

instance of this action may be seen in a teakettle the water of which is
supplied from a spring* or well ; after a time a crust will be found in the
bottom, composed of the mineral matter originally held in the water,
which has gone away in the form of steam.

The mineral matter dissolved in the soil is first offered to roots which
in most cases plentifully interlace the path along which it escapes to
springs and thence to streams. Each year the share of rain water
which finds its way into the soil, amounting on an average to about 2
feet in total depth, goes through that layer and flows to the sea after
gathering a. considerable share of mineral matter. The amount of solid
material suited to the needs of plants which is thus each year withdrawn
from the land and given to the ocean is very great. It is probably in any
one season nearly as much as is taken from the soil and built into the veg¬
etation of the forest, and even that which enters the vegetation is but
temporarily beyond the reach of this danger, for when the plants decay
the mineral material is again ready to be dissolved.

At first sight this great excurrent tide of fertilizing material may
seem to be a most unfortunate feature in the economy of the earth, but
on closer consideration we find that the apparent loss is not real; the
process, indeed, when considered in a large way, is seen to be of a con¬
servative nature. The mineral matter which is taken from the earth
by the percolating ground water is first turned to good account in sup¬
plying the roots of plants; when it has served these needs it is neces¬
sary that it should be drained away, for it would become charged with
a deleterious excess of substances which are taken into solution, and
which, if retained in the soil, would be injurious to vegetation. An in¬
stance of this is familiar to persons who have kept plants in pots. It
is well known to all who have had the care of potted plants that it is
necessary to provide for the ready escape of the water from the vessels.
Some of the effects of an insufficient passage of the water through the
soil may be observed in swamps, and will hereafter be noted in con¬
nection with observations on the arid land of the Cordilleran district
and other places where the rainfall is not sufficient to provide the
normal current of water through the soil. Although it is necessary
for the plant to have a certion amount of mineral matter in the water
which bathes its roots, any excess of such material appears to prove
poisonous. When the water becomes saturated with the substances
it may dissolve, even to the extent to which the sea is so charged
with such materials, the effect on plants is generally destructive.

When water escapes from soil into rivers and goes thence to the sea
it bears with it the mineral matter which it has in solution, and on en¬
tering the ocean becomes mingled with a great store of such substances
which the deep holds in its keeping. We are in part made aware of
this charge of dissolved mineral matter by the evident salinity and hard¬
ness of sea water. In this great storehouse of ocean it has been found
by careful chemical tests that there is a share of the mineral substances

BEGINNINGS OF ALLUVIAL TERRACES IN THE UPPER PART OF THE CUMBERLAND RIVER VALLEY, KENTUCKY.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXV

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OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALEK.]

ACTION OF SEA WEEDS.

295

contained in .soil water. In fact, practically all the elements which exist
in appreciable quantities in the crust of the earth and a great variety
of the compound substances which enter into organic forms, such as
lime carbonate, potash, soda, etc., are known to exist in a dissolved
state in the ocean waters. It is probable that in them is contained a
variable proportion of every element which exists in the earth. From
this great reservoir of the sea the marine plants, each after its kind,
extract substances, appropriating them through their fronds in the same
manner as the land plants take their share by means of the roots in the
soil, but perhaps in greater variety. It may again be noted that, as sea
weeds have no roots, the whole of their surface serves for this purpose
of absorption, whereas in land plants the roots alone have this power of
appropriation.

Sea weeds, like land plants, are mediators between the mineral realm
and the animal kingdom. Animals are altogether incapable of taking
mineral substances directly from the water; they appropriate them only
at second hand, by feeding on the vegetation or on other animals which
have obtained them from vegetation. Although at first sight marine
plants appear, on account of their usually small size, to occupy a limited
place in the sea, the volume of their life is vast; they grow rapidly, they
appropriate mineral substances which are brought to the ocean waters,
and so feed upon the materials which are placed in solution through the
action of the land vegetation. Thus in a simple and tolerably direct
way the removal of mineral matter from the soil serves to provide ma¬
rine life with the necessary basis for its development,
v There are other and important, though remoter, effects arising from
this vast and ceaseless transfer of the minerals of the earth to the sea.
The marine plants and some of the animals have the habit of appro¬
priating large quantities of special substances, such as iron, lime, potash,
soda, etc., and even particular metals, such as silver; and on certain
fields of the sea floor, where the remains of marine vegetation are built
into strata, the seaweeds form deposits remarkably rich in these elements
which they appropriate during their lifetime. Thus the coral animals
build great islands in the ocean and vast fringing and barrier reefs
along the shores. The limestone of these creatures is derived from the
store of that material which is dissolved in the land waters, mainly by
virtue of the carbonic dioxide arising from decaying vegetation, and
which is brought by rivers to the sea. In each cubic foot of this lime
of the coral reefs it is likely that we could find, if we had the means of
ascertaining the facts, one or more molecules derived from each of the
river basins of the earth. So incessant has been this process of change
that it is also probable that every cubic foot of limestone now lying in
the beds exposed on the land contains elements which in their previous
wanderings have journeyed through every sea, which have been in turn
built into strata in all the quarters of the globe.

When animals possess, as many of them do, the habit of secreting in

296

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

tlieir skeletons or shells such important substances as lime phosphate,
perhaps the most necessary of all the soil substances to the develop¬
ment of crops, the beds which are formed of their remains often afford
4- most fertile soils. Thus in central Kentucky, where the soil of the
country has an uncommon fertility and endurance to tillage, its quality
is mainly due to the presence in the limestone beds which underlie the
area of certain layers peculiarly rich in phosphoric acid. Some of these
strata, from a few inches to a foot in thickness, contain from 10 to 20
per cent of lime phosphate, and as these portions of the horizontally
lying rocks decay the fertilizing material is carried down the slopes of
gently inclined hills and, dissolved in the soil water, is made free to all
the plants. (See Fig. 15.) It is hardly too much to say that in each kernel
of which wheat or other grain is temporarily stored the molecules of lime

Fig. 15. — Diagram showing the effect of a layer of rock yielding fertilizing elements to soil, a a , sand¬
stones ; b b, clay slates ; c, limestone yielding fertilizing materials.

phosphate which have been brought together by the action of animal or
vegetable life on the sea floor. Our civilization in good part rests upon the
grains we win from the field. It would not be possible, therefore, to main¬
tain the status of higher men without the compact and nutritious foods
which we thus obtain.

In the above considerations concerning the origin of soil fertility we
have naturally found our way to a division of the subject in which we
are to consider the effect of the diverse character of underlying rocks
upon soils which are formed by their decay. The range of facts which
will have to be explored in order to make a survey of the whole of this
field is so great that it will be necessary to limit our undertaking to
certain characteristic instances which may serve as types of the condi¬
tion, leaving the reader to make his own application of the principles
we thus acquire to the particular cases which he may need to explain.
First of all we note the fact that the classification of soils as regards
their mineral constituents into those of immediate and those of remote
derivation, while true in a general sense, needs a certain amount of
qualification.

OVERPLACEMENT.

Almost all soils except those on very level plains have derived their
mineral parts in some measure from the rocks which do not lie imme¬
diately beneath their site. In the glaciated districts as well as those

OX-BOW SWING OF A RIVER IN AN ALLUVIAL PLAIN: THE GANGES, INDIA.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXVI

LIBRARY

OF THE

WHALER.]

MOVEMENT OF SOIL DOWN SLOPES.

297

covered by river alluvium the transportation of mineral elements is
from distant points and is in a way complete. In other soils, which
may in general be accounted of immediate derivation, where the surface
has a considerable slope, a certain migration of the detritus is brought
about by the slipping of loose earth over the surfaces on which it lies.
As already noted, this action is tolerably constant and may lead to
journeys of the disintegrated rock for distances of a mile or more. Dis¬
tinct evidence of this movement may often be found where a hilltop is
capped by some layer of enduring rock, while its. slopes are underlaid
by a looser deposit, such as clay. In such a condition of the surface we
often find masses of the capping layer which have separated from its
steep face and have slowly journeyed down the incline below until they
have attained the bed of the neighboring stream. (See Fig. 1G.) It
is easy to prove that these masses, which are often many hundred
cubic feet in contents, have journeyed slowly over the distance they
have traversed and with a very uniform motion, and not suddenly, as in
the manner of a landslide. Examining the procession of blocks, we see

Fig. 10. — Diagram .showing the direction and the rate of motion of soil, a a , soil ; 6 6, bed rock. The
arrows show by their relative length the rate of movement at various points.

•

that they have not been overturned, but that they generally lie substan¬
tially in the position of their original bedding. We also note a gradu¬
ally and progressive decay of the fragments as they lie farther down
the slope. Near the cliffs whence they came they have sharp faces and
are very little decayed; a few hundred feet from the escarpment they
are more rounded and the decay has penetrated deeper; near the stream
they are often so rotten that when they actually attain the torrent bed
they are easily broken up by its swift-moving waters. These facts con¬
firm the conclusion that the whole of the soil layer is in gradual motion
down the slope on which it lies. In this movement it is impelled by
gravity abetted by frost action, the expansion of roots, the overturning
movement of uprooted trees, and the burrowing work of a host of animals.

Excellent examples of this movement of soils down the declivities
bordering a stream are afforded by the descent of blocks of stone from
the hilltops in almost all districts where horizontal strata underlie the
surface of a country. It is indeed usual in such regions for the harder
layers to crown the elevations, for the simple reason that such beds, by
resistance to decay, determine the position of the hilltop. Perhaps the
best instances of this in this country are exhibited in the region occu¬
pied by the Millstone grit or the thick conglomerate which lies at the

298

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

base of tlie Coal Measures. These beds often rest upon shales and form
steep cliffs, such as are found along the western escarpments of the
Appalachian coal field. Fragments from these cliff's, sometimes as large
as an ordinary house, maybe observed journeying down the inclines to
the streams. They often bear trees and are surrounded by and partly
imbedded in the soil. Less conspicuous instances of the same nature
may be traced in almost any upland country south of the glaciated
region. (See Fig. 17.)

Besides the migrations of mineral matter brought about in this man¬
ner, there is on steep slopes a constant movement of substances held in
solution by the ground water. This water, creeping down the hill with
its charge of dissolved material, serves to qualify the character of the
nourishment afforded to plants by the substances extracted from the imme¬
diately subjacent rock. It thus often happens that the presence of a layer

of fertilizing material near the summit of a slope will serve to enrich the
soil for a great distance down the incline. Thus in central Kentucky the*
layers of pliosphatic limestone, even though their fragments do not slip
down the hill, will be found to have effected the fertility of soil derived
from rocks barren of nourishment which lie farther down the declivities
in which the enriching layers outcrop. In this way, though the partic¬
ular beds which afford the important mineral element may be so soft
that they yield no fragments to the detritus below their level, the effect
is almost as valuable to plants as where they contribute to the visible
debris. It is a fact worthy of note that owing to this movement of
materials down the slope the substances derived from a particular kind
of rock may affect the soil at some distance below the site of the layer
rather than that which immediately overlies the bed; the outcropping
edge of the rock deposit may itself be covered to a considerable depth
by the barren debris derived from beds which lie higher up the declivity.
The mode of this action is indicated in Fig. 15.

Where, as in the case of hillsides sloping steeply toward the stream,
the motion of the soil is rapid and the torrent at the base sufficiently
powerful to wash the debris away as fast as it comes to the channel, the
soil material may be so speedily removed that it does not accumulate in
a thick layer, aud so the chemical processes do not have time to bring

SHALER.]

SOILS IN MOUNTAIN VALLEYS.

299

the debris into the state where it may be taken into solution. Such
slopes are often in the main covered with a rubble of angular fragments,
mingled with a little true soil, which supports a scanty vegetation, the
condition of the debris showing plainly the lack of sufficient time to bring
the rock waste into the finely divided state in which it may be appro¬
priated by the roots. If in a valley exhibiting these conditions, which
may be said to be normal in mountainous districts, as well as in many
countries where the hills are steep, we penetrate to the headwaters of
the stream, where its dwindled torrents are not able to bear away the
detritus which marches down the slope, we find very different soil con¬
ditions. In these “coves,” as they are termed, the soil is often very
deep and of great fertility.

In the state of nature the difference between the soil in the lower v
and the upper parts of a mountain valley is often attested by the char¬
acter of the forest growth; on the rubble-covered hillsides, where debris
is rapidly removed and therefore always shallow and imperfectly de-

Fio. 18. — Diagram showing relative state of soils in lower part of mountain valley and in the “ cove” at
its head, a, section of lower part of valley ; b, section of upper part of valley ; c, c, bed rock. The
relative size of streams is indicated by the section of the beds. The arrows show by their relative
length the proportional speed of the soil movement toward the streams.

cayed, stunted red and black oaks and rigid pines mainly possess the
field, and to the expert eye attest the barrenness of the earth. In the
coves, however, black walnuts of gigantic size, tulip trees with their
great boles, and other plants which grow only in deep and well decayed
deposits of detrital matter show an entire change of soil conditions.
If the land in the valley be cleared of its wood and cultivated we note
an equally sharp contrast in the crops which it bears. On the steeper
slopes, washed at their base by permanent and powerful streams, the
fields afford only scanty pasturage and generally after a brief trial they
are again abandoned to the natural growth, while in the coves the soil
often proves excellent for the culture of grain, tobacco, or other ex¬
hausting crops. The reason for this fertility of the cove soil is to be
found in the fact that the smaller streams, having near their headwaters
but little cutting power, are unable to convey the detritus away as rap¬
idly as in the lower parts of the valley ; the debris thus has time to be
comminuted by decay and converted into fertile earth. The difference
between the above- described conditions is diagrammatically indicated
in Fig. 18.

300

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

Without discussion it will be evident to the reader that where the
underlying rocks of a district are in the horizontal attitude the soils
will be much more uniformly distributed than they are where the
strata are tossed about by the irregular movements which take place
in the formation of mountain chains. In such disturbed regions the
different beds often stand at high angles to the horizon, and the distribu¬
tion of the debris from them is naturally extremely diversified. Thence
it comes about that in a country of great mountains, such as Switzer¬
land, where the population is dense and the people are driven to search
carefully for every bit of tillable soil, small patches of earth of excellent
fertility are often located in districts which are prevailingly unfit for
tillage. Each of these bits of remunerative soil is usually due to the
peculiar nature of the rock which is exposed to decay at or near the
place where the fertile field exists. Wherever the beds which afford
these conditions are by the twistings and breakings of the strata sub¬
ject to the action of the atmosphere it is likely to give rise to the exist¬
ence of similar patches of fertile soil. It often happens that when the
outcrop of rocks is too steep to permit debris to remain upon its surface
the materials falling to the base of the precipice will gather into a talus ;
there, broken to fine fragments by the violence of their descent, this
rocky matter may afford the basis of an excellent soil. Many of the
best vineyards and fields of Switzerland and of other mountain coun¬
tries are upon slopes of this nature.

Owing to the fact that land in this country is still low priced, but few
of the mountain taluses have been subjected to tillage, and therefore
the peculiarities of soil which are due to the slipping of materials down
the slopes of mountains have not been made the subject of inquiry.
With advancing culture, however, it is certain that we shall have to
imitate the peoples of the Old World and seek every opportunity to
utilize rich lands, however limited in area or difficult of cultivation.
When this stage of our national development arrives thousands of talus
slopes in the Appalachians and the Cordilleras will richly repay care.
Soils of this description are particularly well suited to vineyards. They
serve also very well for orchards and generally for tree plantations of
every description, and this for the reason that the stronger rooted plants,
such as the vines and timber trees, are able to send their underground
branches to great distances through the rubble in their search for an
appropriate food supply.

INHERITANCE.

We have now to consider a peculiar feature in the history of soils de¬
rived from rocks upon which they lie, or at least from a place no farther
away than the upper part of the slope on which they rest. It is evi¬
dent that the continued wearing to which soil materials are subjected
leads to a rapid deportation of their mineral materials, either by solu-
tional action or by the direct cutting away by streams. The rate of

SHALEK.]

DOWNWEARING OF LAND.

301

this removal of soil can be quite accurately gauged by estimating the
amount of water discharged from the mouth of a stream which drains a
valley and determining the amount of mineral matter which it contains
for each day in the year. This task has been approximately accom¬
plished for all the great rivers of Europe and for the Mississippi in this
country. The rate of the downwearing of the land, according to the
diverse inclination and other conditions of the area, varies from about 1
foot in 800 years in some of the rivers which flow from the Alpine dis¬
trict in Europe to about 1 foot in 7,000 years in the Mississippi valley.
Taking the world over, the lands are probably wearing down from the
action of the rain at the rate of about 1 foot in from 3,000 to 5,000
years, the variation in the rate of erosion being due to the amount of
rainfall, the steepness of slope, solubility of rock material, and other
influences. The range in the measure of the action is doubtless great;
it probably extends from 1 foot in 500 years to 1 foot in 10,000 years or
more. In some rare instances, as in the very dry and rocky districts of
desert lands, the rate of erosion may be even slower than 1 foot in
20,000 years. Although the subsidence of the surface may seem to the
reader exceedingly slow, as indeed it is when measured in terms of
human history, it is in a geological sense of a moderately rapid nature.

To appreciate the effect of this process of lowering the land surface
through the action of ground water and streams in bringing about a
downward migration of the soil we may consider the condition of that
part of the Mississippi valley which has probably been above the level
of the sea for almost all the time which has elapsed since the close of
the Carboniferous period. It is likely that the section of the great
continental valley, which includes the upland country of West Virginia,
Kentucky, and Tennessee, has thus been in the condition of land through
the ages from the end of the Coal-Measure time to the present day.
This great interval can not well be reckoned at less than 10,000,000
years; it is indeed more likely that it represents nearly twice that
duration. Although the rate of erosion in the Mississippi valley, con¬
sidered as a whole, is at present not more than sufficient to lower the
surface to the amount of 1 foot in 7,000 years, it seems likely that the
rate of downwear in that portion of the valley which we are now con¬
sidering is as rapid as 1 foot in 4,000 years. Assuming that the present
rate of wearing is substantially that which has on the average prevailed
since the region was finally lifted above the sea level, we And that in
10,000,000 years the original soil surface must have been lowered by the
amount of 2,500 feet.

It should be clearly understood that the computation given in the
previous paragraph is intended only to afford a very general idea as to
the probable rate at which the downwearing of the surface of a country
goes on; the average rate, as assumed, may have been several times
greater or very much less than that indicated. It is not improbable
that at various times in the geologic past the speed with which this

302

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

surface lias been worn away by the elements lias been sometimes far
swifter and again much slower than it is now.

At iirst sight it may seem extraordinary and hardly credible that
such a great amount of rocky matter has gone away from this district;
there are, however, many evidences which point to the conclusion that
not less than this great thickness of beds has, under the processes of
atmospheric decay, disappeared from this part of the continent. Among
the many considerations which serve to substantiate this conclusion we
may note that the coal fields of the Appalachian were undoubtedly
continuous across the table land of central Kentucky where Silurian
strata are now exposed. This is shown by the fact that the flinty and
other enduring debris of these wasted beds are plentifully intermingled
with the other soil materials which lie on the flat hilltops of this country
in positions where it has been protected from the assault of the streams.
The total thickness of this destroyed section can not well have been
less than 2,000 feet and may have much exceeded that depth. (See
Fig. 19.)

It need not be supposed that the region we are considering ever had
a surface 2,500 or more feet above the sea level; it is more likely that

Fio. 19. — Diagram showing the successive variations of fertility in the soils of central Kentucky dur¬
ing the downward movement of the rocks, a, a , a, parts of the present surface enriched hy decay of
limestones; b , next preceding stage, when soils rested on Devonian shales and were moderately fer¬
tile ; c, yet earlier stage, when soils were formed on millstone grit and were very loan ; <1, earliest
stage when soils rested on the coal measures, and were moderately fertile. For simplicity of illustra¬
tion several stages of variation are omitted.

it lias slowly uprisen above the ocean as the beds which covered it have
worn away; but it is necessary to conceive that the soil which we now
find upon its surface has steadfastly moved downward as the beds have
been removed by the action of the agents which wear a way land. The
descent of the soil coating has been accomplished by the solvent action of
ground water and the cutting work of streams. It is likely that both
these forms of erosion may at one time or another have operated on all
or nearly all parts of the descending surface. Although at one time
stream beds where the water does its rending work occupy but a small
part of the surface, perhaps on an average not over one-sixtietli of tlie
area, the streams are constantly swinging to and fro and so in process of
down wearing they come to lie in positions far removed from their present
sites. Only the main divides which separate the waters of considerable
rivers can fairly be supposed to have been exempt from the action of
these migrating channels. (See Fig. 20.)

As soil descends with the wearing away of its materials it of course
is subjected to a constant change in its mineral character. Thus while
soil of the district now occupied by the rich limestone territory of central
Kentucky lay upon the Millstone grit it was doubtless of a sandy and

S HALER.]

INSOLUBLE MATERIALS OF SOIL.

303

rather sterile nature; when in its deseent it came into the limestone bed
it must have been fertile; still farther down, encountering the Devonian
or Ohio shale, which, because of its mineral character, is rather unfit for
plants, the soil would again have been reduced to a sterile state. Finally
in downward migration the surface entered the rich fossiliferous beds of
the Silurian age and from the storehouses of the ancient marine life it
acquired the exceedingly nutritious character of the so-called blue-grass
soil ; thus with the process of down going the character of the superficial
deposits which determined the fertility of the earth was subject to very
great alterations. As forest trees and other plants are distributed in
strict accordance with the character of earth they grow in, each alteration
in soil brought about in the manner above noted leads to a change in the
species which inhabit the area. In the field which we have been con¬
sidering soils formed of the Millstone grit are occupied by stunted red

streams ; 1 a, 1 b, 2 a, 2 &, etc., show the successive positious of these streams. The arrows indicate
the direction of the migrations of the streams.

and black oak and scrubby rigid pin?T; where the debris is of limestone
we find walnuts, coffee nuts, and blue ashes, and other trees suited to
the rich earth. We therefore perceive that each change in the nature of
soil brings about a revolution in the character of its vegetation. (See
Fig. 20.)

As soil migrates downward the greater part of the debris which it
inherits from the rock through which it passes is dissolved and goes
away to the sea. There are, however, certain materials which may
remain for a long time in the soil because they are peculiarly insoluble.
Thus in the limestone soils of Kentucky, the greater part of which are
derived from the rocks on which they now lie, we often find many flinty
and clierty bits which came into the layer when it was in a geological
position a thousand feet or more above the site now occupied by the soil.
Dense pebbles of pure quartz or flint, containing no admixture of other
more oxidizable materials, may survive the assaults of the elements for
an almost indefinite period. They are indeed almost completely insolu¬
ble in soil waters, and when buried in the dense clay they are little
exposed to any agents of decay. It is often possible by the silicified
fossils found in this material to prove that it has descended from a
height of several hundred feet above its present position. Other evi-

304

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

dence to tlie same effect is afforded by the occasional fragments of coal
which are found in certain parts of the country lying upon the Lower
Silurian limestone. One such deposit exists in the southern part of
Campbell County, opposite Cincinnati, where frequent fragments of the
material are found plentifully commingled with the quartz pebbles so
characteristic of the Millstone grit.

It sometimes happens that the barren waste from vanished strata is
inherited in such quantities upon the present surface of rocks which
yield a fertile detritus that the soil has its fertility more or less impaired.
The rocks which are now supplying newly made mineral waste may
themselves be of an enriching quality, but the plants are embarrassed
by the amount of pebbles through which they have to pass to gain the
nutritious material at a lower level. It will be readily understood that
these conditions are found only where the surface on which the soil
rests is level or lies nearly in that attitude. Where the declivity is
considerable the movement of debris towards streams inevitably leads
to its destruction.

In consequence of the downward migration of the soil the oxides of
iron are sometimes accumulated upon or near the surface in such quan¬
tity as to impair its fertility. Particularly in limestone countries these
ores of iron may often be inherited by the surface from beds which orig¬
inally lay over the country. It is characteristic of these ores of iron
that they are readily dissolved in the soil water because of the charge
of carbonic dioxide which the fluid contains. Under ordinary circum¬
stances in this state of solution they are in small part appropriated by
the plants, while the remainder is carried away through the streams ;
when, however, the soil water containing iron oxide comes in contact
with limestone the iron is deposited in the form of a carbonate, while in
its place the water takes a charge of lime which it bears away to the
sea. In these conditions there may be only iron ore exposed to the
action of the roots of the plants, and thus what would otherwise be a
fertile soil becomes unfit for agriculture. As long as the detritus rests
upon limestone these injurious conditions may persist. If in its down
wearing it passes into clayey or sandy beds the excessive charge of iron
may disappear.

If the soil be excessively humid, as it is in swampy districts, the iron,
whatever be the character of the under soil, may, by virtue of another
chemical process, be retained in the earth. The decomposing vegetable
matter of the morass, by a reaction which it is not necessary to explain,
takes the iron which is contained in the water and deposits it as an
oxide in the form of an incrustation on the decaying leaves and other
vegetable waste lying in the swamp water. As these vegetable forms
crumble in their further decay the iron oxide may be accumulated as a
sheet upon the bottom of the basin. When the downcutting of the
stream which drains the swamp occurs, as it is pretty sure to occur in
a brief geologic time, the ore is left as a deposit on the surface of the

SHALER.]

ORGANIZATION OF SOILS.

305

soil. These swamp deposits of iron ore are less detrimental to vegeta
tion than those formed in the manner above described, for the reason
that they commonly contain considerable amounts of lime phosphate,
which is a most desirable substance in every soil.

rBesides the iron ores, manganese is also inherited in much the same
way from the rocks previously occupied by certain existing soils, but
the oxides of this metal more rarely occur than those of iron, though they
are often associated with them, and the effects of the accumulation are
thus not so disadvantageous to vegetable life.

In general the downward movement of the mineral matter contained
in soils tends to promote their fertility, and this for the reason that the
variety of mineral materials in any one layer of rock is generally insuf-
eient to afford the wide range of substances desirable for the uses of a
varied vegetation. Within each area of ordinary soil we commonly find
a share of the substances derived from the higher levels of the strata
through which it has passed ; in this manner it is likely to be supplied
with a wider range of ingredients than the rock on which it lies can afford.
There are also several curious equations of action which tend to prevent
a soil from becoming surcharged with detritus of an insoluble character,
such as flinty pebbles or fragments of chert. When the debris lies on
a slope the constant passage of waste to the neighboring stream clears
the surface of such accumulations; when the area is level the insoluble
materials gradually sterilize the soil so that the vegetable growth be¬
comes scanty and the consequent supply of the C02 to the water so small
that the solvent action of the fluid on the bed rocks is much reduced, and
so the surface migrates downward with lessened speed. With a dimin¬
ished rate of descent the hard bits have a better chance to completely
decay, and they are less apt to form a thick coating upon the surface.
On this account we rarely find any soil completely sterilized by the in¬
soluble fragments which it contains. Though it may not be fit for ag-
Ticulture, it can generally support a scanty forest growth. But for this
partial arrest of the downward working of the surface certain soils
would be so thickly covered with insoluble rock debris that they would
be entirely barren. We thus see that the character of a soil to a cer¬
tain extent determines the rate of down wearing of the country, while
conversely the speed of the descent in a measure fixes the nature of
that layer.

The foregoing considerations should give the student a larger con¬
ception of the historic features of the soil coating than can be acquired
by any more limited view of their conditions. He should clearly see
that this mass of debris, which at first sight seems a mere rude
mingling of unrelated materials, is in truth a well organized part of
nature, which has beautifully varied and adjusted its functions with
the forces which operate upon it. Although it is the realm of media¬
tion between the inorganic and the organic kingdom, it is by the
"variety of its functions more nearly akin to the vital than to the lifeless
12 geol - 20

306

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

part of the earth. It is not unreasonable to compare its operations
to those of the plants which it sustains, for in both there are the har¬
monious functions which lead matter from its primitive condition to the
higher estate of organic existence.

CERTAIN PECULIAR SOIL CONDITIONS.

So far our attention has been mainly given to the three groups of
soils which are the types of the detrital coating in most parts of the
world, viz, the alluvial, the glacial, and the locally derived deposits. In
certain cases, however, we find soils which have been affected by local
though it may be wide-reaching conditions, and which constitute fields
affording problems of great economic as well as scientific interest.
Among them we shall note the two divisions of arid and inundated lands,
or those which suffer from an insufficient or an excessive water supply,
and also those formed of materials transported through the air, together
with certain other less important types of structure which will have to
be at least incidentally considered.

It has already been shown that the prime mover in the formation of
soils is the water which penetrates into and circulates through the
superficial portion of the under earth ; it is therefore natural that any
great variation in the amount of this fluid should give rise to consider¬
able differences in the constitution of the mass which it in good part
creates and makes useful to plants. Such, indeed, we find to be the case.
When the amount of the underground water and its other conditions
are such that from time to time it fills the soil and then almost altogether
escapes to the streams and air, we have what may be termed the normal
conditions of the layer. Where the water is not supplied in such
quantities as are necessary to these movements, or where the supply is
so excessive that the earth is kept in a soaked state throughout the year,
the effect upon the earth is perturbing and detrimental. Owing to the ir¬
regular distribution of the rainfall and in part, especially in the case of
inundated lands, to the slope of the surface, about one- third of the con¬
tinental areas have an imperfectly functioning soil coating. The arid
lands or those which suffer from insufficient ground water occupy some¬
where near three-tenths of the continental area. The swamps or other
inadequately drained lands include about one-thirtietli of the surface
which is above the level of mean tide.

The arid portion of the earth is mainly grouped into five great fields,
which lie in central and western Asia, northern Africa, central and
western Australia, western South America, and the Cordilleran district
of North America so far as that field lies in Mexico and the United
States. There are other portions of the earth which are desolated by
drought, but they are all of small area. In none of these arid regions
do we find that absolutely no rainfalls; but in them the quantity of tlie
tall is too limited to serve the needs of all save a few kinds of plants
which have habits of growth fitting them to live with little moisture.

SHALEB.]

ALKALINE CRUSTS IN ARID DISTRICTS.

307

The amount of rainfall in desert countries varies from less than 1 inch
to about 10 inches per annum, and in most cases the supply comes to
the earth in some one season, sometimes in a single brief rainfall. When
the rain is precipitated in this fashion, even as much as 20 inches falling
in a season of 1 or 2 months, though it may nourish certain forms of
plants adapted for development in the short time during which the soil is
moistened, the region may be classed as arid, for it will be unable to
maintain our ordinary forests and except when artificially irrigated will
be generally unfit for tillage.

Arid soils commonly exhibit certain peculiarities which are not found
in those of ordinary humidity; they are usually of more than average
depth, for the reason that while the amount of water may be quite suf¬
ficient to promote the chemical decay of bed rocks, there is not sufficient
passage of the fluid through the debris to bring about much deportation
of the material in the state of suspension or solution. Even where the
mass of debris is tolerably deep and open in its structure continued
droughts preceding the time of rain and the general absence of a layer of
vegetable mold commonly cause the soil to present a dense baked sur¬
face which may shed the rain like a roof. So, too, the lack of any but
ephemeral vegetation, or of stunted plants which furnish little organic
debris, diminishes the amount of mold which is contained in the de¬
tritus, so that the mineral elements of the soil are insufficiently mingled
with organic matter. Held below the compact surface and with no
great amount of transfer of the soluble mineral matter to streams, the
soils of this arid nature iu time become superabundantly charged with
the various saline matters which are of much importance to organic life.
Although the process by which these substances are brought into a
soluble form goes on more slowly than in the case of ordinary soil, be¬
cause their removal is not brought about, they slowly accumulate until
they become in quantity far greater than in ordinarily humid parts of
the earth.

When the potash, soda, and other soluble materials stored in the arid
soils become excessive there is a curious action manifested by which
they are uplifted to the surface and form a coating upon it. This coat¬
ing may appear as a thick and enduring crust, such as occurs in certain
parts of the well known alkaline plains of the arid region of the Cordil¬
leras. The process by which these saline materials are brought to the
surface is as follows : When in the season of brief rains the soil becomes
for a time tolerably wet a large part of the alkaline matter is taken into
solution in the ground .water. The dry air evaporates a portion of the
fluid next the surface, and this, passing into the form of vapor, leaves
its mineral contents at the place where it went into the atmosphere. As
the interstices of the soil are left empty by the disappearance of water,
some of the fluid from below rises to the surface and in turn goes through
the same process. In arid as in other soils the spaces between the grains
act in the manner of those in a lamp wick to draw up the lower fluid to

308

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

the point where it escapes by the action of heat in the form of vapor :
as in the lamp the solid material contained in the oil forms a crust at
its top, so the mineral matter of the soil water incrusts the surface of the
earth.

In the manner described in the preceding paragraph, the alkaline
materials of arid soils in times of drought migrate to the surface; if the
rainfall be sufficiently heavy, it may in the next wet season dissolve the
crust and return the material to a lower part of the soil; if tbe rainfall
be less in quantity, it may happen that for at least a term of years the
crust will remain on the surface of the soil. The effect of this excess of
soluble material is gradually to add to the sterility of the earth in which
it occurs; but this influence is frequently transitory; it endures but for
a short time after the soil is by art provided with sufficient water to
wash away an excess of soluble materials. These alkaline districts are
in most cases admirably suited for betterment by irrigation; it requires
but a thorough washing out of the excess of saline matter, such as can
by irrigation be quickly brought about, to convert such a district into
fertile ground. In general these earths which contain an excessive
amount of soluble material lie in the more level portions of the country ;
where the soil is upon steep slopes, the effect of gravity, acting upon the
surface water as well as that which penetrates the ground, is to urge the
fluid more rapidly down the slope and thus to secure the deportation of
the alkaline matter; consequently the more steeply lying land of the
district may be exempt from alkaline crust, while the flat country may
be covered with the coating.

It is a noteworthy fact that in the region of the great basin of the
Cordilleras the valley deposits are coarse and pervious to water in their
margins near the bases of cliffs, but fine and impervious in the centers
of the several basins whereunto only the finer portions of the detritus
worn from the mountains has been conveyed by the action of water and
air (see PI. xiv).

In many parts of the United States the ordinary brick used in ma¬
sonry, after being built into a wall, frequently exhibits an alkaline
crust, the formation of which is exactly comparable to that found in the
arid plains of the Cordilleran district. When a wall composed of these
brick becomes soaked by a beating rain various soluble substances are
dissolved by the water which has penetrated the masonry. During dry
weather this water evaporates on the surface of the wall substantially
as it does on the surface of the soil, and a similar coating is formed.
Unless pains be taken to scrape away this facing crust the greater
part of the matter will be returned to the brick during the next spell of
rainy weather, and so sometimes for 20 years or more the alkaline mat¬
ter will perform a succession of journeys into and out of the baked clay.

It must not be supposed that the formation of this alkaline coating is
altogether peculiar to arid districts, though its results are most evident
in those fields. The same action takes place on all soils whatsoever in

S HALER.]

FORMER CONDITION OF ARID LANDS.

309

tlie change from wet weather to dry. Even in regions of ordinary rain¬
fall where the earth is fairly rich in soluble salts the attentive eye will
detect the beginning of such a coating. It is the frequency of rainfalls
which prevents the sheet from becoming a distinct feature. It is per¬
haps worth while to note the fact, though it has been before adverted to,
that it is to this constant elevation of the plant food nearly to the top
of the soil which enables our grain-bearing plants to find sustenance in
large quantity near the surface.

In certain rare cases the process of watering arid land, if a sufficient
exit for the fluid is not provided, leads to the formation of an alkaline
crust; thus in the delta of the Nile, where the quantity of water avail¬
able for irrigation is scanty and the price set upon it high, people have
endeavored to economize by providirg insufficient exit for irrigated
land. In this case the alkaline materials derived from the deeper por¬
tions of the soil form a coating on the surface during the long dry
season, and the vegetation suffers from an excessive amount of mineral
matter in the soil, which is in a state to be taken into solution. When
these alluvial deposits were formed they contained no excess of soluble
material, but lying for ages in the deposits they have become more
decayed and thus a relatively large part of the mineral matter enters
into the soluble state; it is evident that this affords an excellent exam¬
ple of the progressive decay of detrital materials deposited in the river
plain.

Much of the exceeding fertility which characterizes the lands of the
arid district when they are properly irrigated is doubtless to be accounted
for by the peculiarities of climate of the region in which these fields lie.
In such a district the sky is prevailingly cloudless and the measure of
sunlight which comes to the surface is much greater than in humid
regions. The result is that if their roots be well supplied with water,
many plants flourish in the dry air with much greater luxuriance than
where the moisture comes to them altogether from the rain which falls
on their leaves or on the ground about them.

In most cases the soils which are now arid have not been in that state
for any considerable geologic time. Their present condition is due to
climatic changes which appear to have come about with the decline of
the glacial period. This alteration is most conspicuous in the Cordil-
leran region of North America. It is also evident on the arid western coast
of South America. It is especially marked in the district of the Rocky
Mountains, in northern Mexico and the United States, where we find the
surface dotted over with old lake-beds the waters of which once covered
a large part of the area, making the country one of the most extended
and beautiful lacustrine fields in the world. Many large lakes, like that
in its shrunken form known as Utah or Salt Lake, occupied extended
plains and valleys which now contain only the diminished remnants of
those seas. In place of fresh water these lakes now present alkaline or
salt pools of trifling extent. When these inland seas were full of fresh

310

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

water there must have been a relatively great rainfall in this region now
arid. The valleys which at present are the seat of streams only during
the brief rainy season were tlieu occupied by large and permanent
rivers, so the soil generally must have been the seat of luxuriant for¬
ests. The result of these variations is that the existing detrital deposits
of that region are in part at least derived from a time when soil-producing
agents were more active than at present. It seems very doubtful if
the existing soils of this area could have been formed in the conditions
which now prevail.

f-Tlie insufficiently leached soils of the arid region shade off indistinctly
into the better watered soils which surround them. Sometimes, indeed,
where the region is far too arid to permit the growth of forests or the
use of the land for tillage, but where it is of an open texture, the rainy
season being characterized by a brief but abundant downfall of water,
the leaching process, though limited in duration to about a month, is
sufficient to prevent the soil from retaining an excess of alkaline mate¬
rial. Whatever be the precise nature of these arid soils, and they are
almost as varied in their qualities as those of normal humidity, they
commonly prove of unusual fertility when redeemed by a proper system
of irrigation. This fertility is due to the fact that they have not had
their soluble material freely transported to the sea by the excurrent
ground water. Moreover, a large part of their mineral constituents are
in a decayed state, and thus readily pass into a condition fit for plant
food as soon as the mass is supplied with water and intermingled with
the waste of decaying vegetation.

Passing from the arid soils to those which are excessively humid, we
traverse a wide gradation in the conditions of these detrital deposits
as regards the amount of their water supply. The range is very great
in the quantity of rain which falls upon the surface of soils classed as
neither arid nor inundated ; it may be taken as varying from 15 to 600
inches per annum. This difference has no such effect as would at first
sight seem likely to ensue, for the reason that whatever the amount of
water which falls upon the surface the excessive supply has no effect
upon the deposit, after the interstices of the soil are filled, save to swell
the streams and thus increase their carrying power. The soil takes in
rain water up to a certain point, which is determined by the speed at
which the fluid can drain from the detritus into the streams; any ad¬
ditional amount is surplusage and has no influence on the under earth.
On the other hand, when the quantity of water in the soil is less than
is required for the maintenance of its functions, unless, indeed, it has
become baked by enduring drought, the pores of the earth greedily
drink in not only the rain but even the dew which falls each night.
This provision for the dew is generally disregarded in the account taken
of the water supply of a country; yet it is often of as great value as
the rainfall, and sometimes maintains a moderate fertility in a land
which would otherwise be sterilized by drought. During the time when

SHALEK.]

SOILS OF SWAMP DISTRICTS.

311

the dew is falling and lies upon the ground and the foliage, a period
that commonly lasts for about half the day, evaporation from the earth
and from the leaves of plants is arrested. Moreover, many of the lesser
plants have their leaves and stems so arranged that their expanded
surfaces gather the water and lead it down to the roots, and thus
moisten the earth in the most advantageous manner.

When during any period of drought in the upper part of the soil,
however dry, the capillary or wick-like action of the spaces between its
grains causes the water to rise from the lower levels to the field occupied
by the roots. Herein lies one of the advantages of securing a deep soil
by proper methods of tillage; the water can be stored in the interstices
of the lower levels, and when demanded can be brought to the upper
levels where the roots can obtain access to it. Forest trees can pene¬
trate the under soil and seek out the stores of water in the lower earth,
sometimes to the depth of 10 feet or more; but more delicate annual
plants, which afford the greater part of our crops, can not in their brief
period of growth push their roots more than G or 12 inches below their
crowns.

SWAMP SOILS.

As long as the measure of humidity is such that, a soil may occasion¬
ally become moderately dry, so that the air can penetrate into the inter¬
stices, it may be regarded as still in the class of normal deposits of this
nature, wherein the supply of water is such that, the alternate wetting
and drying can not take place, but the interspaces being continually
tilled it enters into the group of swamp soils. In this class of deposits
the exclusion of air makes the matter unfit for the needs of most plants;
them roots can not secure the aeration which they demand; in fact,
there are only a few rather singular species which can make their roots
serve them in a soil which is continually filled with water during the
growing season.

Swamp lands exhibit considerable diversity as regards the origin and
nature of the deposits which constitute their soils; in all cases, however,
they are characterized by a greater proportion of organic matter on their
surface, or in their upper part, than is found in ordinary soils. This is
due to the fact that when animal or vegetable matter is immersed in
water it decays more slowly than when it is in succession wetted and
dried. W oody substances when submerged in water gradually pass into
the state of peat or muck, and beyond that stage of decay change goes
on very slowly or is entirely arrested. The normal result is that in
these inundated areas there is an ever thickening deposit of half-decayed
plant waste, which generally contains not more than from 5 to 10 per cent
of mineral matter — far too little, indeed, to give it the qualities of a good
soil. Although the roots of certain plants find their needed sustenance
in these swamp accumulations they are essentially unfit for the growth
of the ordinary forest trees, and for nearly all the tillage plants until

312

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

they liave been drained and subjected to an exposure of the air for a
considerable period. When un watered and allowed to undergo a suffi¬
cient decomposition from the action of the atmosphere they invariably
prove to be of great fertility, and endure the tax of culture remarkably
well. A large part of the best lands in Europe have been won to tillage
from ancient morasses. In this country the area of such lands which
are suited to improvement by means similar to those which have been
successfully adopted in the old world exceed 100,000 square miles. In
general lands of this class constitute a most important reserve, from
which extremely fertile fields may in time be obtained, capable in the
aggregate of supplying food for a population nearly as great as that
now contained in this country. It is therefore worth our while to glance
at the history of these morasses, noting the diverse conditions under
which they are formed and the effect of these on their possibilities of
reclamation. A more detailed explanation will be found in the general
account of inundated lands in the Tenth Report of the Director of the
U. S. Geological Survey.

The simplest class of swamp deposits is formed where a thick forest
growth, in a region of no great excess of rainfalls and of approximately
level surface, leads to the retention of water in the soil to an injurious
degree. In such an area the dead leaves and branches encumbering
the ground so delay the passage of water to the streams that the clear¬
ance is not effected from one rainy period to another. In this case the
plants, particularly mosses, reeds, and rushes, possess the ground;
species of trees originally inhabiting the district are generally expelled,
and the field remains deforested or is occupied by those varieties only
which can live amid the hostile conditions. In manyparts of the world
this action leads to the deforesting of extensive tracts of tree-covered
ground, a sheet of bog earth taking the place of the original growth.
In earlier states of this process the pioneer may easily convert the
ground into tillable earth by clearing away the forest and breaking up
the thin sheet of swampy matter with the plow. When the deposit has
so far thickened as to drive the forest trees away, however, the layer of
spongy matter is generally too deep for immediate tillage, and the field
must be improved by ditching. This class of wet woods is less common
in the United States than in the region to the north; yet such areas,
often of great extent, are common in the part of the country east of the
Mississippi and north of the Ohio and the James rivers, and are of oc¬
casional occurrence in more southern and western fields. Morasses of
this sort are most apt to occur in cold climates where the snowfall is
great in quantity and where the summer is moist. Under these condi¬
tions the ground has not time to dry during the short summer season.
They are particularly likely to be found where the area has newly been
elevated above the level of the sea and has the characteristic nearly flat
surface proper to ocean floors. Whenever the surface slopes toward
the streams with a descent of less than 5 feet to the mile, unless it is

VIEW IN THE DISMAL SWAMP OF VIRGINIA, SHOWING CHARACTER OF VEGETATION IN THAT DISTRICT.

The growth on the right of the canal is a canebrake.

SHALER.]

SOILS OF FLUVIATILE SWAMPS.

313

underlaid by very eoarse porous soil, it is likely to take on this upland
swamp character. The great dismal swamp of Virginia and North
Carolina lies on a tine sandy soil with a slope of about 20 inches to the
mile, yet it is covered by a thick layer of peaty matter (see Pis. xxvn,
xxviii and xxix).

Next after the sloping upland group of swamps we may note those
inundated lands which lie on the alluvial plains of our greater rivers.
These are due to the frequency or persistency of floods which rise above
the channel of the river. They are usually most extensive and difficult
to win to the uses of culture along the lower banks of a river where its
waters are checked by the nearness of the sea, and the height of the
plains is lessened by the fact that the slowing current has allowed all
but the finer sediments to lodge in the upper parts of the valley. As is
well known, these fluviatile plains are almost always highest nearest
the margin of the river, and they slope thence toward the hills which
bound the valley in the manner indicated in Fig. 14. Although the
elevated border of the terrace may have sufficient height above the
river to furnish the drainage necessary for a normal soil, the lower lying
back country is usually so depressed as to have a swampy nature.
The waters from these “back swamps” are with difficulty discharged,
for any small stream which may cut through the elevated strip next the
river is likely to be from time to time closed by the sediments of the
main stream or blocked by driftwood which readily enters the passage
which its mouth forms through the alluvial plain. Generally the drain¬
age of these swamps is effected by a gentle drift of waters parallel to
the river which goes on until the volume is great enough to secure a
permanent exit to the main stream. As this current is checked by the
mass of living and dead vegetation through which it passes it often
comes about that these back swamps are maintained when there would
be dry land in case the path for the escape of their waters was free (see
PI. xxix).

The fluviatile swamps include another class of morasses formed when y
the stream abandons a portion of its channel seeking a shorter way to
the sea. These swamps do not differ from those formed in lakes and
will be considered under the head of lacustrine deposits. It is charac¬
teristic of the back-swamp deposits of the river plain, as in general of
all of this class of sediments, that they commingle organic and inorganic
matter in a very perfect way. Thus these fluviatile swamps contain a
much larger proportion of inorgani c sediments than the commoner class
of morassal deposits formed in lake basins. The result is that these
soils wheu drained are in almost all cases at once fit for tillage without
the time-consuming and costly process of removing the excess of vege¬
table mold. When adequately drained they can usually be made serv¬
iceable to the farmer at once. The greater part of the delta of the
Mississippi is occupied by morasses of this nature. The fertile lands
at the mouth of the Rhine are also to a great extent winnings from the
same class of inundated soils.

314

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

The last group of fresh-water morasses which needs be mentioned in
this paper is that which owes its character to the lacustrine conditions
of its deposits. Whenever a water basin is formed without distinct
current movement, a number of aquatic species of plants differing in
various parts of the world, but all fitted for growth in very humid soils,
seize upon the earth at the margin of the basin and proceed to accumu¬
late a layer of vegetable mold upon and beneath the surface of the
water. If the level of the lake be variable in a considerable degree, or
if from its size and form of shore all parts of the coast line be subjected
to strong waves, these plants may not succeed in beginning the work
of filling in the basin with vegetable matter; but it commonly happens
that in the shallowed parts of the shores the mosses of the genus
Sphagnum and some few flowering plants find a foothold and create a
layer of living and dead roots, leaves and stems, forming a tough peat.
This deposit, though it begins to grow on the shore, gradually extends
out over the surface of the water on which it floats. As it grows on the
top it settles down into the lake and finally comes to rest upon the bot¬
tom. While this top sheet is forming and extending its margins by
continued growth in its upper parts, it is decaying in its under portion and

the fine carbonaceous mud is settling to the bottom. When the process
is finished the lake is closed with the peaty accumulation. Only the
larger areas of water, which have at the same time more considerable
depth and thus by their powerful waves break up the advancing sheet
of organic growth, can keep their basins open, however wide they may
be, for their bottoms are shallow, the growth of reeds, rushes, or lilies
is likely to form a natural breakwater in front of the peaty layer which
serves to fend their assault from the spongy advancing shelf. In this
manner at least nine-tenths of the very numerous lakelets which existed
in the northern part of the continent at the close of the glacial period
have been closed with organic waste. (See Fig. 21.)

Unlike the peat which forms in the swamps of alluvial terraces, that
of the lacustrine swamps generally contain but little mineral matter.
It is indeed so devoid of it that it can not be used for tillage until the
ground is not only drained but the peaty layer burned away or allowed
to decay in the slower manner in which atmospheric action effects this
end. Deposits of this nature are often so deep that the task of remov¬
ing the vegetable matter is practicably impossible of execution. In this
case the only way in which these areas can be made of profit is by using
them as nurseries of certain species of trees, to which they are often

RECLAIMED FIELDS IN THE CENTRAL PORTION OF THE DISMAL SWAMP, VIRGINIA.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXVIII

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALER.]

PHOSPHATIC DEPOSITS IN SWAMPS.

315

well adapted. The juniper and the bald cypress, the tupelo, the water
maples and the willows and the birches, as well as a number of other
useful timber trees, have developed a certain endurance to the excessive
humidity of swamps. In certain cases, as in that of the tupelo and the
bald cypress, the tree has developed a peculiar form of roots which
causes the aeration of sap in such a manner that it can withstand an
amount of moisture sufficient to destroy many other species. It is
probable that the greater part of our lacustrine swamps will in time be
made to serve as nurseries of timber.

Another form of agriculture in which these peat swamps can be made
of use is indicated in the method in which cranberries are extensively
reared in Massachusetts, and elsewhere along the coast as far to the
south as southern New Jersey. This form of tillage is perhaps the
most original of any which has been invented in this country. In pre¬
paring swamps for this mode of culture, the top part of the original bog,
that containing all the living roots and stems, is cut away, and the
lifeless muck which lies below the removed layer is covered with a layer
of sand several inches in depth, which is evenly spread over its sur¬
face. In this layer of sand the plants are rooted, and through it may
descend to the underlying vegetable matter. The advantage of the
sandy layer consists in the fact that the weeds do not readily root in it;
moreover, it affords a firm footing to the laborer. It is likely that this
method of tillage may advantageously be followed in the case of other
economic garden plants, which, while they require dry grouud for their
crowns, luxuriate in a soil abounding in vegetable matter.

The soil bed of modern fresh- water swamps, the layer which lies be- *
neath the accumulation of peaty matter, is commonly not of a fertile
nature. This is owing to the fact that the movement of water which
takes place through it is generally slight ; little air penetrates into the
interstices, and so the decay of its stony material goes on slowly ; there is
none of that, constant overturning of materials, which, as we have seen?
takes place in ordinary soils, such as those on our uplands. The deposit
formed on the bottom of our swamps does not constantly descend by
the process of mechanical and chemical erosion through the strata on
which it lies, and thus there is no renewal of the fertility of the bed
due to this action. Influences, however, are at work which bring about
the formation, just above the bottom of the swamp, of a deposit of
greater or less thickness which commonly contains a considerable
amount of lime phosphate, a substance of great value in the produc¬
tion of most economic crops. The mode in which this accumulation is
formed is not yet well understood, but it seems to be in general as fol¬
lows:

In the water of most modern swamps as well as stagnant pools there
commonly dwell a great variety of small crustaceans which have the
habit of appropriating the phosphatic matter from the animals and
plants on which they feed. This material they deposit in the outer coat

316

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

of their body, or, as it is commonly called, the “shell.” When these
creatures die, their remains are doubtless in part dissolved and reap¬
propriated by other organic forms, but in part they find their way
to the bottom, and there along with other mineral materials form a layer
rich in fertilizing matter. If the water which enters a morass is
charged with iron, this layer generally appears as a bog ore; but in most
swamps the amount of the oxides of this metal is so small that the deposit
is not of that nature, and the pliosphatic material is thus the more ready
to serve the needs of the plants which call for it. The solubility of
lime phosphate is much less than that of other compounds of lime, so
that it is not borne away in solution as readily as ordinary limestone
would be; in consequence of this limited solubility the bottoms of the
swamps often come to contain a remarkable amount of grain-producing
material. (See Fig. 22.)

The pliosphatic matter which finds its way into swamps and is there
stored in the deposits accumulated on their bottoms is doubtless in all
cases derived from the rocks lying in the region whence the streams

Fig. 22. — Diagramatic section through lake basin showing formation of infusorial earth, a, bed rock ;
6 6, floating peat; c c, decayed peat; d. infusorial earth.

which flow into the morass drain. Almost all strata except the purer
sandstones and flinty rocks contain a notable quantity of this substance,
which was built into their masses at the time when they were accumu¬
lated on the ancient sea floors, the material coming to its position in the
bodies of fossil animals and plants, which in turn obtained it from the
sea water. Entering the swamp through the rivers the lime phosphate
is first appropriated by certain water plants ; these are eaten by fishes
and crustaceans, and when these animals die their skeletons convey the
phosphatic material to the floor of the bog, where it is slowly built into
a layer.

It is through the local accumulation of phosphatic matter in some¬
thing like the manner above described that the swamp soils accumu¬
lated on the sand of eastern Virginia and INorth Carolina have been
made exceedingly fertile. In that region, through the enrichment which
the organic forms of the swamp waters have contributed to the deposit
on the bottoms of the morasses, the drained ground affords extremely
fertile fields. Thus, while the sandy region about the Dismal Swamp
is essentially worthless for grain crops, the dewatered swamp land yields
even to a rude tillage exceedingly large returns. These fields often
afford rich harvests for many successive years without any fertilizing
whatever. (See Fig. 23.)

VEGETATION IN THE FRESH WATER SWAMPS OF CENTRAL FLORIDA.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY • TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXIX

SHALER.]

MARINE MARSHES.

317

The swamp lands of the United States, which are the most redeem¬
able and which when won to the uses of agriculture afford fertile
fields, lie mainly on that portion of the Atlantic slope between New
York City and the mouth of the Mississippi River. Almost with¬
out exception these morasses lie at such height above the sea that by
the use of simple engineering contrivances they may be effectively de¬
watered. In general these fresh- water swamps are covered with a dense
growth of timber, which, owing to the fertility of the soil, is inter¬
mingled with a very thick growth of underwood, climbing vines, reeds,
and other water-loving plants, so that the cost of clearing away the
luxuriant vegetation must be added to the considerable expense which
is afterwards required in draining the land by ditches. Nevertheless
the quality of the soil is so good and its endurance under cultivation so
continuous that the next great step in the economic development of the
eastern portion of the United States will probably consist in the redemp¬
tion of these inundated lands. In the general accounts of the swamp
districts of the United States contained in a memoir published in the

Fig. 23. — Diagramatic section from seashore to interior of district recently elevated above the sea level.
a a, bed rocks ; b, beach deposits and dunes ; c c, marine sands with gently rolling surface.

Sixth Annual Report of the Director I have given a somewhat special
account of these redeemable swamp lands. It may be here noted that
some of the largest fields for the enterprise of the engineer lies in the
State of Florida, where there exists about 28,000 square miles of country
more or less adapted to such improvement.

Although, as before remarked, the larger part of these coastal swamps
of the United States are covered by dense forests, certain fields which
are destitute of arboreal growth invite improvement. Thus a large
part of the Everglades in southern Florida is open land, but is almost
covered by a growth of reeds and other relatively slight vegetation.
There are also considerable areas, generally lying in the central portion
ot timbered swamps, which are so far covered with water that they appear
as tolerably permanent lakes, such as Lake Drummond, of the Dismal
Swamp, of Virginia. In most regions these lacustrine areas will, when
drained, afford fertile ground, but in some instances their bottoms have
not received a coating of vegetation and remain as bare sands, scarcely
more fitted for the uses of agriculture, even when thoroughly drained,
than the general surface of the plains which lie without the limits of
the morass.

MARINE MARSHES.

The last class of humid soils which we have to notice is that which
includes the varied forms of tidal marshes which are formed along the

318

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

seashore. These marine morasses are produced wherever there is a
tidal movement of more than 1 or 2 feet in altitude. They accumulate
in the indentations of the shore which are sheltered from the action of
the greater waves, for the reason that in more exposed places these
surges break up and scatter the frail accumulations as rapidly as they
are formed. Like the lacustrine swamps, marine marshes begin with the
growth of a fringe of vegetation next the shore; but while the mosses
play the principal part in forming the peat deposits of fresh water, the
grasses, certain species of which have the capacity of enduring salt
water, do the work of constructing these marine deposits. The shelf
they build is at such a height that its upper level falls just below the
plane of high tide, so that with each oscillation of the waters a depth
of a few inches is for an hour or two laid over the surface of the marsh.
Each recurring tide not only refreshes the plants but it also brings in
among them more or less floating debris, which catches in the tangle
of the stems and gradually adds to the mass of the deposit. Beginning
to grow, with water of considerable depth, the shelf in this manner grad¬
ually attains to near the level of high tide. This sheet of dense fibrous
peat, composed mainly of plant remains, is mingled not only with the
materials washed in by the tide, but is in part composed of the waste

Fig. 24. — Diagrammatic section showing the origin and general structure of marine marshes, a , original
surface at shore line; b, grassy marsh; c, mud flats; d, eel grass; e, mud accumulated in eel grass
growth.

derived from the numerous small animals, such as shellfish and crus¬
taceans, which dwell in the interstices between the plants. Unlike the
lake swamps, this sheet of organic matter, formed as above described,
never floats on the water ; it lies upon the bottom and firmly adheres
thereto. At the margin of this sheet of vegetation the waves from
time to time break up the structure of the mass and distribute the waste
over the bottom of deeper water, thus shallowing it and making it easier
for the organic shelf to advance farther into the bay (see Fig. 24).

The construction of this tidal peat is still further favored by the growth
of the interesting plant commonly known as the eel grass ( Zostera mari-
tima) a species of true flowering plants that has acquired the habit of
living with nearly all parts of its body permanently below the level oi
water. Even a portion of its flowers are permanently covered by the
sea. Growing in a densely crowded manner, this singular plant, by its
remains and by the quantity of detritus which it gathers in its entangled
foliage, shallows the areas of the bays in which it grows and so makes

SHALER.]

FERTILITY OF MARINE MARSHES.

319

a foothold over which the higher lying turf gradually extends. Favored
by these conditions, the tidal marshes gradually spread over the shoals
of our bays, finally closing all the sheltered inlets of the coast except
where the depth and width of the indentations is such as to permit the
waves to beat against their shores with great violence. Thus along
the coast between Yew York City and Portland, Maine, the growth of
these peculiar marine marshes has diminished by more than one-lialf
the area of the harbors which were occupied by tolerably deep water at
the close of the last glacial period. The total area of these accumula¬
tions which are now bared at half tide along the part of the shore above
referred to exceeds 350,000 acres.

Along the shore line between Yew York and St. Augustine, Florida,
these tidal marshes are very extensive and widely distributed ; they
contain an area many times as great as that presented by the shore of
Yew England. The total surface which they occupy has not yet been
well ascertained, but it probably amounts to some thousands of square
miles. It is a noticeable fact, however, that the character of these
marine marshes gradually alters as we go southward; with the change
of species of the plants which compose them and the alteration in the
energy of tidal currents due to the diminished height of oscillation they
exhibit a marked change in their character, the plants grow less thickly,
and the deposits often assume the character of muddy flats. South of
St. Augustine and around the shore-line of Florida these marine marshes
are generally covered with a growth of mangroves, a tree of curious
structure and habits which by its peculiarities is able to grow in salt
water. It is probable that within the limits of the United States the
total area of marine marshes, including only the deposits which are
bared at half tide and which owe their formation mainly to the growth
of grass-like plants, is nearly 10,000 square miles.

The quality of the soil which may be won from these organic accumu¬
lations of the shore land is excellent. Owing to the abundant remains
of animals, they are remarkably rich in those materials Avhicli are most
necessary for vegetation and which are rarest in ordinary upland soil;
lime, potash, soda, and phosphate are commonly present in relatively
large quantities; in fact, these marine marshes in their excess of soluble
materials in many ways resemble those which are found in arid districts.
In both cases the excess of such matter is mainly due to the imperfect
circulation of water through the soil; in the case of the arid land from
the lack of water; in that of the marine marshes, from the fact that the
fluid does not, during the brief time when the mass is exposed to the
air, have a chance to discharge the water it contains.

When these marine marsh lands are won from the sea they afford
soils of remarkable fertility and endurance to the tax of culture. It
requires, however, a certain time after the surface has been barred from
the sea before the soil of the marsh is fit for tillage; the tough layer of
fibrous roots must first be destroyed by decay or by fire and the excess

320

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

of saline materials removed by solution in rain water before the earth is
adapted to the growth of plants which yield valuable crops. These
changes will spontaneously take place in the course of from 3 to 5 years
after the sea is excluded from the marsh, but by breaking up the sur¬
face with a plow and cutting frequent ditches through the plane a single
year will often suffice to bring the soil into the state where any of our
domesticated plants will grow upon it. At first, in just the manner
of the arid fields of the desert region, and for the same reason, this
marine marsh soil will in times of drought form a crust of saline mate¬
rials on the surface. As the drainage becomes more complete this crust
ceases to appear, as it does on the alkaline plain after a thorough irriga¬
tion. As the excess of organic matter decays the surface of the reclaimed
marsh settles down until it conies to rest at a point of from a foot to
18 inches below its original level.

Some of the richest fields of this country are yet to be won from these
salt marshes of the ocean shore. So far but little has been done to
reclaim them. A few small areas in Massachusetts, New Jersey, and
Delaware, probably not amounting in the aggregate to more than 5,000
acres, have been diked from the sea and reduced to subjugation more
or less complete. Of these reclaimed areas the largest lies in Marshfield,
Massachusetts. Here a district of about 1,500 acres has been separated
from the ocean by means of a small dike. There are many other places
along the shore between New York City and Portland, Maine, where
areas of from 50 acres to 16,000 acres can, in a similar way, be reclaimed
at a relatively small expense. By the use of proper machinery the cost
of diking, ditching, and breaking up this class of soils will probably not
on the average exceed $100 per acre. Considering the exceeding fertil¬
ity of fields thus won from the sea and their remarkable endurance to
agriculture, which permits them to be cropped for a generation without
the use of fertilizing materials, they may fairly be regarded as remuner¬
ative investments even at this considerable cost of preparation. The
experience of the seaboard states of northern Europe clearly shows
that these marine marshes afford a most valuable resource for the future
of American agriculture.

TULE LANDS.

Among the many local varieties of soil which have attracted attention
and received special names we may note one of the most interesting
varieties, known in California as tule lands. These deposits are to be
ranked in the group of swamps. They mostly occur iu the valleys of
the San Joaquin and Sacramento and especially in the lower portion
thereof. They consist of very extensive marshy districts which are sub¬
jected to inundations and which occupy in general the position of allu¬
vial plains iu other parts of the country. Near the level of the sea these
marshes are mostly occupied by species of the round rushes; at higher
points iu the valleys is a greater variety of grass and rush-like vegetation.

SHALER.]

SOILS OF FORMER GEOLOGICAL AGES.

321

It lias been found that when these lands are subjugated by drainage
or by burning the peaty matter in the dry season the ground is admi¬
rably adapted to grain crops. Even without plowing, after treatment
by lire, the ashy soil yields remarkable returns of wheat.

It seems likely that the relatively very great fertility of these tide
lands as compared with the reclaimed swamps of the eastern part of the
United States may be explained by the comparative dryness of the
country in which they are found. There are many reasons for believing
that the climate of the California district is prevailingly drier at the
present time than it was in the immediate geological past. It seems,
therefore, likely that, although at many places still quite wet, these
swamps have somewhat dried away; a good deal of their vegetable
matter has decayed and the ashy waste thereof is commingled with the
peat which remains, adding much to its fertility. Moreover, the quantity
of dust transported through the air in this part of the country is great,
and in the course of time the contribution of enriching sediment from
this source has probably been considerable.

There appears to be more variation in the character of these tule lands
than in swamp deposits in other parts of the country. Thus it has been
noted that those which lie near Tulare Lake afford a heavier soil than
similar deposits found elsewhere in California. A detailed discussion
of these variations here would be out of place; moreover, the present
writer has not had the opportunity personally to observe them.

ANCIENT SOILS.

Although the soil-coating of the earth is in a certain way an ephem¬
eral structure and is commonly subjected to immediate destruction
where it is affected by the action of the waves, by glacial wearing, or by
other violent accidents, some parts of this detrital coating in certain
times and places have by chance been preserved to us from a remote
geologic past. The first clearly recognizable deposits of this nature are
found in the rocks of the Carboniferous age, where, indeed, they plenti¬
fully occur; beneath each bed of coal we commonly discover a layer of
material which was the soil in which began to grow the plants from
whose remains the coal bed was formed. So as far as these coal-pro¬
ducing plants were rooted forms they generally drew their sustenance
from these ancient soils. We can still in many instances trace their roots,
and occasionally we find the tree fern or other plant to which they belong
standing/ erect amid the swamp deposits which accumulated about it, and
' which now appears as coal. These soils of the Coal Measures differ from v7
those now existing on the upland parts of the earth in certain important
ways; they are generally of less thickness than are those of to-day
which have been formed under similar conditions, and contain a rather
smaller proportion of organic matter. These peculiarities are probably
due to the fact that in the olden time there were few kinds of plants
12 geol - 21

322

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

which had strong roots, and thus there was less opportunity for vege¬
table matter to become commingled with the earth (see Fig. 25).

The most peculiar feature of these
ancient soils consists in the fact
that they usually lack those mate¬
rials, such as potash and soda, which
are a conspicuous and necessary ele¬
ment in the greater part of the soils
of the present time. The general ab¬
sence of such material has led to the
occasional use of these ancient depos-

. . . Fig. 25. — Section through coal bed. a, bed rook;

US US hl'e clay, i. e., materials which under-clay or ancient soil; position in which

will endure without melting the iron oxides often occur; c, layer of coal; d, sand-

° stone or other bedded rock; c, fossil tree, with

high temperature to which they are roots in under-ciay.
exposed in furnaces. In any ordinary soil a white heat will cause the
siliceous element of the deposit to melt, for the reason that the lime,
potash, or soda which it contains will combine with the silica when the
mass is greatly heated, thus forming a glass or cinder. It is not likely
that the present condition of the Carboniferous soils is that which they
exhibited when plants first began to grow upon them; at that time they
may have had the usual share of alkaline substances ; but the very con¬
ditions which made these soils the seat of swamps secured the surface
on which they lay from wearing downward in the manner common in
ordinary districts, and so prevented the constant renewal from the
underlying rock of the materials removed by vegetation. The result was
that in time the earth below the swamp accumulation was deprived of
the matter which could be removed through the action of plant roots.
So far as these plants by their conditions of growth could take up sol¬
uble minerals of the soil, they removed them, storing the matter in their
stems and leaves. When the plants decayed their waste fell into the
peaty accumulation and gradually the mineral matter became leached
out and conveyed away to the sea. As there was no means of restoring
plant food, the soil gradually lost the power of contributing to the growth
of plants. Thus while in the case of ordinary upland soils the process
of decay in the underlying rock continually adds to tlieir fertility, while
the waste of vegetation is constantly returned to the earth, in most of
these swamps of the Carboniferous time, on the contrary, all the condi¬
tions serve to pauperize the layer. Owing to various causes, however,
some of which are to be noted hereafter, the soils beneath our modern
swamps do not in the same complete manner undergo the process of
exhaustion.

It is probable that the progressive removal of the soil matter from
beneath the swamps of the Carboniferous period had much influence on
the development of the peaty material which in time became converted
into coal. The larger part of their carbonaceous material was formed
from the waste of plants which required a certain amount of mineral

SHALEK.]

ORIGIN OF PRAIRIES.

323

matter for their support. This the plants had to obtain through their
roots. After the swamp attained a certain thickness, the continual
leaching away of these substances would gradually limit the growth
of the plants which tenanted the morass, and finally the growth might
be entirely arrested by lack of such material to support the vegetation.

PRAIRIE SOILS.

There is another important group of soils which owe their peculiarities
not to any excess or insufficiency in their water supply, but to the cir¬
cumstances of their geographic situation and organic history. These
are the prairie lands of the Mississippi Valley, and the similar soils
which are found in various parts of the world. The origin of the prairies
of this country has been a matter of much discussion, and many theories
have been advanced to account for their existence. In the state of
nature from which they are now rapidly passing, these wide fields were
generally unforested rolling plains with scanty woodland growth,
which was mainly limited to the neighborhood of the streams, while
their surface was covered by a dense and rank herbage of annual
plants, mainly grasses springing each season from perennial roots.
Along the banks of the permanent streams and in swales of their surface
there were strips and patches of woodland, but it was often possible to
journey for a day without seeing a tree. This untimbered country was
in marked contrast with much of the neighboring land. Thus a large
part of Michigan and Ohio and portions of Indiana were densely
wooded, and these districts lie on three sides of the extensive prairie
district which existed west of the Mississippi River. The soil of these
prairie lands generally afforded a combination of mineral and organic
matter exceedingly well suited to grain crops, so that when subjugated
it yielded ample returns to tillage.

Among the several explanations by which it was sought to account
for the treeless yet fertile nature of the prairies we may note the two
which seem most important. It has been held that the prairies owe
their unforested condition to the exceeding fineness of division which
characterizes their mineral material, it being supposed that such com¬
minuted matter was unfavorable to the growth of trees. This does uot
seem to be a reasonable supposition, for we find that when occupied by
civilized man the prairie soil will nurture a great variety of trees quite
as well as any other soil. There is therefore no reason to suppose that
the condition of the soil can in any way account for the failure of the
forest growth to take or keep possession of these districts. It has been
supposed by some that these prairie districts have recently been occu¬
pied, in large part at least, by great lakes, the extension of the fresh¬
water seas such as Michigan and Erie, or perhaps other basins of the
northwest. While it is probably true that a considerable portion of the
prairie districts have been thus recently submerged, it seems certain
that this fact can not in any way account for the absence of forests, for

324

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

tlie reason that a large part of the area in northern New York, Ohio,
and Pennsylvania was also recently occupied by extensions of the great
lakes which lie in the vicinity, yet these regions are abundantly tim¬
bered. It seems therefore certain that the forest trees have had time
to return to the prairie district, especially as there are scant patches of
varied wood along the streams and other wet places in prairie districts.

The most essential peculiarity of prairies consists, as is well known, in
their treeless nature. This feature may be well explained in the follow¬
ing simple way : The region they occupy is characterized by periods of
enduring drought, which reduces even the forest-clad portions of the
country to conditions of extreme dryness. At such times forest fires
will spread with great celerity and extend to vast distances; even in the
relatively humid districts of Michigan such conflagrations, though op¬
posed by all the arts to which the settlers can resort, often extend for
scores of miles. The native Indians of this part of the country were in
the habit, through carelessness or design, of firing the prairie grasses
every spring. Such fires swept like a whirlwind over the plains and
were rarely interrupted in their ravages by broad rivers or by swamps.
They would extend into the margins of the forest, and if the vegetable
mold was not very retentive of moisture would result in the destruction
of all young trees in the wood. In pine woods such fires would destroy
all the vegetation with which they came in contact,
vj It is likely that in the far West, near the foot of the Rocky Mountains,
where the climate after the close of the glacial period became excessively
dry, the soil may have ceased to bear forests because of its arid nature.
The process of burning may then have extended the prairie country to
the eastward until the condition of open ground was brought into dis¬
tricts where the amount of rainfall was sufficient to maintain forest
trees.

Evidence that this timberless character of the plains east of the
Mississippi river has been brought about by the spread of fires is afforded
by the conditions which existed in Kentucky during the latter part of
the last century. While the Indians used this region as a hunting
ground, the district between Louisville and the Tennessee line, extending
thence westerly along the southern border of Kentucky to the Cumber¬
land river, was mostly in the condition of prairies. Except near the
streams and on the margin of this so-called “barren district,” the for¬
ests were scarred by fire. There were no young trees springing up to
take the place of the old and thick-barked veterans of the wood, which
from the hardness of their outer coating could resist flame. When these
mature trees died they had no succession, and so the prairie ground
became gradually extended over the area originally occupied by forest.
After the Indians were driven away about 50 years elapsed before the
country was generally settled, and in this period the woods to a con¬
siderable extent recovered possession of the areas of open ground. The
periodic firing of the grass having ceased, seeds were disseminated from

STALER.]

FERTILITY OF PRAIRIE SOILS.

325

the scattered clumps of wood, and soon made them the centers of
swiftly spreading plantations. It was the opinion of the late Senator
Underwood, of Kentucky, who had seen this country in the first years of
the present century and who was a most intelligent observer, that the
timberless character of this district was entirely due to the habit which
the aborigines had of firing the grasses in the open ground.

It is an interesting historical fact that the first settlers of the country
deemed the untimbered limestone langls of western Kentucky infertile,
and therefore gave to them the name of “barrens.” They were led to
the conclusion that these lands were sterile by the fact that in their
previous experience the only untimbered lands with which they had
come in contact were unsuited to agriculture. It is not likely that the
Americans or their British forefathers had ever seen any soil which was,
before it was subjugated, in anything like the condition of the prairie
lands, unless it may have been inhospitable fields near the seashore or
certain small areas of a fertile nature in the Shenandoah Valley, which
had been deforested by Indians, probably also by means of fire. Several
years passed after the settlement of Kentucky before the true character
of the so-called “barren” lands was ascertained and they were found to
be generally of a very fertile nature. Meantime young forests rapidly
extended and much of the country which was in a state of prairie had to
be stripped of this woodland growth before it was ready for the plow.

The extremely fertile nature of prairie soil when it is first tilled is
easily explained. Owing to the generally level character of the district
occupied by these open lands the soils were deep, for the reason that
they did not have the chance to slide down to the streams in the man¬
ner which we have seen to be common in hilly districts. The frequent ,
burning of the rank growth of vegetation constantly returned to the
soil large amounts of potash, lime, soda, and phosphatic matter in the
soluble form which is suited to the needs of grain-giving plants. As
the deposit lay on nearly fiat surfaces and the rainfall was moderate in
quantity, the ground water did not bear the soluble materials away to
the stream as rapidly as they were formed. The result was that when
these prairie regions were submitted to the plow they yielded in a few
years the store of plant food which had been garnered during many
centuries of preparation. Unfortunately, their primal fertility has not
proved very enduring; the layer of fruitful earth is generally of only
moderate depth, and with the reckless agriculture which commonly
characterizes this country they have been in most cases within 30 years
brought to a state where they aft'ord only a moderate return for the
labor bestowed upon them. The crops of wheat which originally were
30 or 40 bushels to the acre are, after a generation of culture without
artificial replacement of fertilizing materials, reduced to an average of
about 1G bushels. It should be noted, however, that even where the
original fertility of these prairie soils has been materially diminished
they are readily restored to something like their pristine condition by a

326

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

proper system of tillage, in which deep plowing and a reasonable use of
fertilizers alike find a place.

The effect of the vegetation which occupied the prairies for many
centuries before the coming of white men was to draw the soluble por¬
tion of the fertilizing substances to the upper part of the soil, and to
leave the subsoil unaffected by any of that peculiar work which is ac¬
complished by the strong roots of forest trees. These, as we have seen,
tend to draw mineral substances from the deeper portions of the subsoil
and from the bed rocks, accumulating the material in the growing veg¬
etation, whence its return to the upper part of the soil by process of de¬
cay. Much can be done to help these soils by deep plowing and by the
the process known as subsoiling, whereby deeper layers are opened to
the access of air. In a word, we need to imitate in the prairies the pecu¬
liar task which has been performed in most districts by the roots of trees.

WIND-BLOWN SOILS.

Last among the soils of peculiar history we may consider those where
the mineral materials have been brought to their position by the action
of wind. In most countries this group of soils is of small importance,
and in North America the blown-sand areas do not occupy in the aggre¬
gate more than two or three thousand square miles of surface. The
most easily recognized accumulations of this class are those which form
along the seashore, where winds blowing inwardly to the coast carry the
dry sands from the beach and deposit it in the form of hill-like masses,
termed u dunes.” These heaps of blown sand often march slowly and
with a variable movement far inland. The blast of the wind drives the
grains up the more exposed side and over the summit, where they drop
in the lee of the mass of the hill. These u dunes” sometimes rise to the
height of one or two hundred feet above the base. Wherever they are
formed on open ground they have a ridge-like character, the long crest
lying transverse to the direction of the prevailing winds. Where the
dry sand enters the forest lands the accumulation is often in a more
slieet-like form, and this because the close-set trees destroy the move¬
ment of air currents. (See Fig. 13.)

When they first start from the shore the dunes are usually composed
of very clean sand, the grains of which are of about the same size in
each layer of the deposit. The material is of a finely divided nature,
but occasionally the stronger winds convey to the mass pebbles as large
as ordinary peas. As the dune advances farther from the shore they
come into a region where the energy of the storms is rapidly diminished
by the friction of the air upon the surface; the pebbles are then left
behind in the path of the dune and only the finer materials are con¬
veyed onward. As this motion of the marching sands is usually at the
rate of a few feet each year, the matter is partly decomposed by the
action of air and rain, so that vegetation finds a chance to take root upon

shaler.] BLOWN SANDS OF DESERT REGIONS. 327

it. As the living mantle grows thicker it gradually restrains the action
of wind, until finally the mass is brought to rest.

Migrating sands are formed not only along the seashore and along
the shores of the greater lakes, but also beside the banks of rivers,
which cut through deposits of glacial drift, where the sands have been
separated from the clay. Thus some of the most extensive, or at least
the most widespread, dune deposits occur along the eastern sides of the
greater New England rivers, as for instance in the district bordering
the Merrimac, between Nashua and Concord, New Hampshire. They
are less conspicuous and characteristic beside the rivers in these dis.
tricts, for the reason that the areas are generally forest-clad, and so the
deposit appears in the form of a broad sheet accumulated between the
trees.

As compared with Europe, deposits of blown sand in the form of
dunes are relatively rare on this continent, because on the eastern coast,
where alone sandy shores abound, the prevailing winds are from the west
and air currents thus serve to prevent the extension of the blown de¬
posits for any distance into the interior. A narrow strip of dune sands
borders the Atlantic coast from Cape Florida to the eastern end of
Long Island. They are tolerably abundant on Cape Cod and the islands
which lie south of that cape. The northernmost point at which any
considerable deposit of this nature occurs is in Massachusetts, imme¬
diately west of Cape Ann. At no point, however, do these dunes extend
for more than about 3 miles inland from the sea, though there are some
lying at points farther inland, accumulated when the seashore lay some¬
what farther westward than it does at present. The slight incursion of
these dunes is due to the great violence of wind during easterly gales.
The rate of movement of the storms, however, does not persist for any
distance from shore, and the material thus imported is subjected to the
constant attack of the less violent but more prevalent westerly breezes.

The most important interior deposits of dune sand are found along
the borders of the great lakes in the Laurentian system of waters. Of
these the largest and most interesting area lies at the south end of Lake
Michigan.

Although a portion of the sand included in these dunes has been de¬
rived from the existing beach of the lake, it is probable that the greater
portion came from the ancient shore of that water which, during the
last or Pleistocene geologic epoch, lay at a higher level than at present.

Similar deposits of blown sand, essentially like dunes in origin, though
commonly of a more sheet-like nature, are apt to be formed in regions
where the surface is covered with fine debris, but where there is not
enough rain to support a vegetation sufficiently luxuriant to protect the
detritus from the action of wind. This is the case in the Sahara and
other deserts, where a large part of the detritus was formed on ancient
sea floors or accumulated when the climate permitted the construction
of soils, but where the arid conditions now prevent the growth of plants.

328

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

Iii such desert regions the winds are continually bearing away large
amounts of sand and other finely divided rocky matter which accumu¬
late in marching dunes within the desert region and often invade the
better watered countries on its margins. Thus the sands from the
Sahara, marching before the west winds, have already entered and dev¬
astated considerable portions of the valley watered by the Nile. The
general effect of these movements of air-driven detritus is to impoverish
the surfaces which they cover. The deposits themselves, owing to their
very siliceous nature and their extreme permeability to water, are of
little service to plants, and therefore are worthless for the uses of man.

It should be noted that the dunes formed by the disruption of soils
which, though once well watered, ha ve through climatic changes become
extremely arid are less infertile than are those which are formed from
the coast detritus. The reason for this is readily seen. While the
coastal sands have by washing been deprived of all their clayey matter
and are thus generally of a nearly pure siliceous nature, the detritus of
the desert contains a large part of the finely divided and fertilizing
materials which belonged to the soil before it was broken up. Owing,
however, to the action of the wind, this finer material is commonly
driven to a much greater distance than the coarser debris. The
result is that in many of the desert areas in the Cordilleras the pul¬
verized rock matter has blown away from the surface leaving a sheet
of pebbles and other rock fragments where there was once a distinct
s soil. In the eastern portion of Asia, about the head waters of the great
rivers of China, there are vast accumulations, sometimes a thousand
feet or more in thickness, composed of fine dust which has blown from
the desert area of that continent into the more humid region of the
eastern part of the continent. The masses accummulate in the form of
a table-land, sometimes filling deep valleys which were excavated in a
time before the dust invasions began. Dex>osits of less extent and
thickness essentially like those in China have been formed by the
migrations of dust in several other parts of the world. In the western
Mississippi Valley, especially in the northern portions of that area, are
considerable accumulations of fine-grained detritus evidently brought
from a great distance. This material is commonly known as loess; its
origin has been a matter of much debate, but it seems likely that it is in
part at least due to the action of the wind blowing the fine detritus
from the region about the eastern face of the Cordilleras into the central
portion of the continental valley.

In larger part, however, the loess of the Mississippi Valley probably
owes its origin to conditions which existed during the last glacial period,
when the region in which it lies received the fine flour-like sediments
ground up beneath the ice and borne forth to the margin of the glacier
by streams of fluid water which flow beneath such ice masses. This
fine-grained and therefore easily transported detritus appears to have
been distributed over wide areas adjacent to the main stream in the

SHALER.]

EFFECT OF MAN’S ACTION ON SOIL.

329

northern part of the great valley. As these soils, which owe their
origin to drifting dust, are generally formed by the descent of the
particles into interspaces between the growing vegetation much in the
manner in which it accumulates in alluvial terraces, the mass commonly
takes on a horizontal distribution well suited to the uses of agriculture.
The mineral substances of which it is composed are usually much oxi¬
dized before they enter on their journey, and owing to the way in which
they are laid down amid the growing vegetation they become thor¬
oughly mingled with decayed vegetable matter. Thus while the march
of the wind-driven soils is in an immediate way devastating, the move¬
ment of the lighter part of the debris may be advantageous to the soil of
the districts in which it comes to rest.

None of the dune deposits in this or other countries have any value
for tillage purposes. In fact their only human interest consists in the
dangers which they may bring to fields and habitations. In Europe
this is often serious. In the region at the head of the Bay of Biscay
an extensive territory has been covered by these sands and reduced to
a state of sterility. It has required a large amount of official care to
restrain the march of these blown sands in that part of France. In
eastern England a considerable village known as Eccles was, more than
a century ago, overwhelmed by the vast marching dune. So thick was
the accumulation that not only were all the houses deeply covered, but
the parish church was buried beneath the mass. After more than a
century of inhumation, the subsequent march of the wandering hill has
begun to disclose the houses of the village, and it seems not improbable
that in the course of another century the heap may pass by the site of
the town.

We have now completed our general survey as to the effect of the
varied conditions which operate in the formation and preservation of
soils. This account is incomplete as regards details, but it is to be
hoped that it may give the reader a general idea as to the balance of
the organic and inorganic actions which affect this admirable life-giving
coating of the earth, the zone from which all the higher life springs
forth, and to which, after the appointed term of existence, it quickly
returns. We have seen that the adjustment of these conditions per¬
mits the soil to form and do its appointed work in varied states of the
earth’s surface. We have now to consider some of the effects of human
culture on the soils, and also in a measure the reactive effect of this
envelope upon the estate of man. In this field of inquiry we shall find
a large and varied set of problems which can be considered ' only in a
very general way.

ACTION AND REACTION OF MAN AND THE SOIL.

The primitive men, at least in their savage state, had very little in¬
fluence on the soil — much less, indeed, than many species of lower animals.
As long as men trusted to the chase, to fishing, or to the resources af-

330

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

forded by wild fruits and grains for their subsistence, and to chance
stones picked up along the stream for their weapons, they were practi¬
cally without influence upon the soil. When, however, our kiud took the
first long step upward in the arts and began to till the earth, a new and
momentous influence was introduced into the assemblage of soil condi¬
tions. Even in its simplest form tillage requires that the natural coating
of vegetation shall be stripped away in order that the plants which have
been selected for culture shall have entire control over the nutriment
which the earth affords. Agriculture, moreover, requires that the soil
shall be overturned in order that plants may in the open textured earth
have a better chance of pushing their roots easily and swiftly through
the mass in search of food. Both these processes are exceedingly sub¬
versive of the original conditions of the soil. They manifestly tend to
break up the adjustments by which the deposit is created and preserved.
While in the wild or natural state the surface is generally covered by
an assortment of trees of varied species, as well as of lesser undergrowth,
the roots of which are always deepening the detrital layer and winning
new and lower-lying stores of nutriment. Moreover, in this condition
the earth is well protected from the detrimental action of the rain by a
coating of decayed organic matter which is constantly working down
into the true soil.

In its primitive state the soil is each year losing a portion of its nu¬
trient material, but the rate at which the substances go away is generally
not more rapid than the downward movement of the layer into the bed
rock. Thus from age to age the detrital mass, save by unusual accidents,
js neither thinned nor impoverished. But when tillage is introduced,
the inevitable tendency of the process is to increase the rate at which
the soil is removed until the destruction begins to trench upon its depth
and fertility. When mantled with its coating of vegetation, which in
its natural state is never violently disturbed, the earth yields to streams
only that part of dissolved matter not seized upon by the dense tangle
of roots, which in most cases occupies the whole of the detrital layer.
Except for the undissolved sediments worn away along the banks of the
stream or the shores of lakes and seas, no part of the soil, while it re¬
mains in its normal condition, goes away in the state of mechanical
suspension.

If the reader would acquire a distinct eye impression of the difference
between the conservative conditions which prevailed in the soil before
man’s interference and the destructive state which exists afterward, he
should during a time of continued rain resort to some of the numerous
valleys of the Appalachians where the country is but partly subjugated
by man. He will there observe that the streams which drain the dis¬
trict where tillage prevails are charged with a burden of detritus won
from the soils. This is shown by the reddish yellow hue it has imparted
to the water flowing from the valleys where tilled lands lie. While most
of the tributary brooks send out such turbid waters to the main stream,

FORM OF SURFACE IN AN ELEVATED REGION SOUTH OF THE GLACIATED BELT.

The fourth ridge from the foreground lies in a field which has been for some time untilled, and which is beginning to be gullied by the rain.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXX

LlBfi Ah -

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

SHALEll.]

EFFECT OF CULTIVATION ON SOILS.

331

we here and there find one which, though swollen by the rain, lacks all
such coloring matter. The stream is either pellucid, or, if stained, has
the brown hue which decayed vegetation may impart. On investigation
it will always be found that streams which flow clear water drain from
valleys in which the primitive forest is unbroken, while those charged
with a load of detritus are from districts where there are extensive tilled
fields. After a little practice in observation it is possible from the share
of mud in the waters of a brook to tell how far the clearing away of the
forests has extended in the valleys whence it flows. Where, as in the
valley of the upper Missouri, the vegetable coating is extremely incom¬
plete, owing to the present arid state of the country, the torrents which
form in times of rain may, from the ease with which they wear the un¬
protected surface, convey large amounts of detritus in their waters.
This, however, is an exceptional condition of the natural soil (see PI.
xxx).

In this country, where the lands have been tilled for a relatively short
time, the evils arising from the waste of soil when it is bared of vegeta¬
tion are not so pronounced as in many parts of the Old World, where
extensive districts have to a great extent been devastated by this action.
Thus in many parts of the Mediterranean region, particularly in Italy,
the soil upon the slopes of steep hillsides, which once bore luxuriant
forests, and which might with due care have been made the site of rich
pastures and orchards, are now reduced to the state of bare rock. In
the region immediately north of Florence there are upland districts where
it is possible to walk for miles without setting foot on anything in the
way of soil which has any arable value whatsoever; yet in this section
but a few centuries ago there was a thick layer of fertile forest mold,
which, when the woods were swept away, was quickly washed down upon
the plains or into the sea.

The effect of the extensive culture of European soils is shown in the
proportionately large amount of waste carried out in the form of mud by
streams which drain that country. The Rhone and the Po, which flow
from two of the most completely tilled districts of the world, discharge
with their waters enough detritus to lower the surface of the country
which they drain to the amount of about 1 foot in each thousand years,
while the Mississippi, which drains from a valley as yet imperfectly tilled,
carries to the sea only about enough detritus to lower the surface by one
foot in 7,000 years. Although the evils arising from the washing away
of the soil in America have not as yet been very serious, a close reckon¬
ing of the loss would probably show that it already amounts to the
practical destruction of that coating over an area some thousands of
square miles in extent. These depauperated districts lie almost altogether
in the region to the south of the glacial belt, and mainly in the hilly
portions of the so-called Southern States, especially in Virginia, the
Carolinas, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi. There is scarcely a
county in these States where it is not possible to find a number of areas

332

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

aggregating from 300 to 500 acres where the true soil has been allowed
to wash away, leaving exposed to the air either bare rock or infertile
subsoil. Where subsoil as well as the truly fertile layer has been swept
away the field may be regarded as lost to the uses of man, as much so,
indeed, as if it had been sunk beneath the sea, for it will in most instances
require thousands of years before the surface can be restored to its
original estate.

Where tillage, without due care for the needs of the soil, has led to the
destruction of the superficial layer, while the subsoil is retained, the
damage is remediable, provided pains be taken to smooth over the
ridges and furrows with which the earth is seared, and to clothe the
surface in grass. Those who find themselves charged with such care
will do well to observe what happens when any steep slope is deprived
of its forest covering and is left unprotected by such a coating as is
formed by grass roots. As soon as a surface of this nature is laid
bare, the rain, gathered into rills, begins to cut in the manner of moun¬
tain torrents, the separate channels often being separated from each
other by intervals of only a few feet. As long as the beds of these riv¬
ulets are in the friable earth they wear rapidly downward, and thus keep

Fig. 26.— Diagrammatic section showing process of formation and closing of gullies on hillsides.
a a, original surface; b b, gullied surface; cc, original outline of gullies; dd, outline of healed surface ;
ee , detritus washed into gullies; g g, vegetation serving to retain detritus.

the sides of their little valleys very steep; they often, indeed, form an
angle of 30° or more in inclination. The earth when moistened slips
down these declivities with such speed that no vegetation has a chance
to take root upon them, and so the process of degradation may go for¬
ward at the rate of several inches a year. Where certain species of
trees or bushes, such as willows, are naturally or artificially planted in
the furrows in so close-set an order that they may check the rapid cur¬
rents, and by their roots prevent the down-cutting of the streamlets, the
erosion may be checked and in a few years the surface will again be¬
come smooth. The mode of this action is indicated in the accompany¬
ing diagram, which represents successive stages which have taken place
in a rain-furrowed field in the limestone district of northern Kentucky
in a term of 10 years (see Fig. 26 and PI. xxx).

It is most important that the conditions of this rapid erosion, which
is likely to take place on a large part of the lands of the earth, should
be clearly understood and its consequences distinctly apprehended.
The prime cause of this danger is due to the reckless effort to win for

VIEW SHOWING THE GRADUAL PASSAGE FROM ROCK TO SOIL.

In the right foreground is a small recent talus formed since the excavation was made.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXXI

OF THE

4-!N!VER$!TY of ILLINOIS.

SHALER.]

AREA OF ABANDONED FIELDS.

333

plow-tillage land which is lit only for other and less unnatural forms of
culture. Wherever the inclination of the slope exceeds about 5° of
declivity (or one in twelve), except where the soils are remarkably per¬
meable to water, it may in general be said that justice to mankind
demands that the field be as far as possible exempted from the influence
of the plow. Such land should be retained in grass or in orchards, or
used as a nursery for timber.

Although our land is still almost of virgin fertility, a heedless neglect
of our duty toward it has led to the destruction of the soil over an
aggregate area of probably not less than 4,000 square miles. This
meaus the loss of food-giving resources which would be sufficient,
with proper care, to support a population of about one million people.
Besides this annihilation of the earth resources in the area where the
soils have been allowed to wash completely away, a vastly more im¬
portant though less visible damage has been done by the partial de¬
struction of the nutritive layer, in the course of which it has been thinned
and worn to a point where it will no longer pay the cost of tillage.
When brought into this impoverished condition it is, in the common
phrase “turned out,” or, in other words, committed to the slow process
of redemption which the natural agents of soil-making may bring to
bear. It is fortunate that over the most of this country, perhaps over
three-quarters or tliree-flfths of its tillable land, the surface has such a
gentle inclination, and the native grasses form so firm a sod, even on
exhausted land, that these abandoned fields do not wash away, but are
allowed slowly to recover from the brutal ill usage to which they have
been subjected.

The total area of these abandoned fields which lie in the States of
Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky alone amount, according to the
estimate I have made with some care, to between five and six thousand
square miles, or about one-thirteentli of the total tillable surface of
these States. Taking the lands of the United States as a whole and
basing the estimates on numerous local inspections of the conditions of
diverse areas, I am satisfied that at least five per cent of the soils which
have in their time proved fertile under tillage are now unlit to produce
anything more valuable than scanty pasturage. The average impover¬
ishment of the area which has been subjected to the plow is not to be
computed; but from the statistics of grain production, as shown by the
successive censuses of the country, it seems not unlikely that it amounts
to 10 per cent or more for the whole country. It is greater in the South
and in the new States of the Mississippi Valley than in the eastern
portions of the Union, because careful tillage has long been made possi¬
ble in the last-named section by the high price of farm products.

A portion of this waste of our soils has been inevitable and not
blameworthy, for it has been due to the rapid extension of the popula¬
tion over districts so remote from markets that it was only by methods
of tillage which taxed the earth to the utmost, that any profit could be

334

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

liad from farming. We have, indeed, thus paid away much of our
birthright in the fertility of our soils as the price for a swift expansion
of our population. Although there may be a certain justification, as
above noted, for a portion of our soil-wasting, a larger part of it has been
brought about by an ignorant neglect of certain simple but inexpensive
precautions which to a great extent would have saved the progressive
decline in the productive value of the earth. Although these precau¬
tions are almost self-evident, it may be worth while to set them clearly
and briefly before the reader.

First of all, every husbandman should clearly understand that the
process which he follows in obtaining crops from the soil is essentially
unnatural. In the state of nature all that the vegetation takes from
the earth is promptly returned to it by the processes of decay. There¬
fore it is evidently necessary to limit as far as possible the tax laid
upon the earth in our artificial treatment of it, and to provide in every
practicable way for the replacement of the substances removed by the
harvests. The details of methods by which the pauperizing of the soil
may be avoided belong in the main to the science and art of agricul¬
ture; there are, however, certain questions in relation to these matters
on which the geologist may be allowed a word of comment. The natural . -
method of preventing the progressive thinning of the soil due to the
material removed by crops and to the washing away of its substance in
the state of mechanical suspension is by deepening the layer of detritus
and making it as open-textured as possible. This end can best be at¬
tained by thorough tillage, especially by the process known as snbsoil-
ing, whereby the compact lower layers of the soil or even the decayed
portions of the bed-rock, if they be near the surface, may be disrupted
and the matter put in a condition to become dissolved and made avail¬
able to plants. In this way, while the surface may still wear down at
a rate much more rapid than when it is forest-clad, the lowering of the
base of the soil may be made to keep pace with it. Moreover, by keep¬
ing the detritus near its original thickness and also open-textured, a
larger portion of the rainwater will enter the earth and, moving slowly
toward the open drainage channels, may not scour away the debris. By
this downward extension of the soil the mass of detritus within a given
area which can yield plant food is likely to be increased, and so the
earth becomes better fitted to the peculiar drain which tillage imposes
on its mineral stores (see PI. xxxi).

Our common method of shallow plowing continued year after year to
the same depth tends to create a few inches below the surface an arti¬
ficial hardpan formed by the pressure of the base of the plow. At best
this instrument of tillage is a rather clumsy contrivance for the end it
seeks to accomplish: its action is that of a wedge driven through the
earth, which divides and overturns the soil above the share while it
compacts and smears the lower portion over which it slides into a mass
which, if the material be at all clayey, as is the case with all good soils,

SHALER.]

EFFECT OF CROPS ON SOILS.

335

becomes in a few years almost as impervious to water as a roof. The
result of this action of the plow is to limit the penetration of the rain¬
water to the upper part of the detritus, which is loosened by tillage,
and also to prevent the penetration of roots and increase the danger of
the materials washing away.

These evils may be in a great measure avoided by a few simple expe¬
dients. When only the common plow can be used, the depth of the fur¬
row should be varied from year to year so that the compressed level
where the heel has trod may often be broken up. Where possible some
subsoil-breaking implement should frequently be used to open the lower
portion of the detrital layer to the entrance of water and of roots.
Among the many means by which these ends may be attained we note
the familiar device of sowing certain crops, such as red clover, the
plants of which have strong tap roots; these, save in very compact
earth, will penetrate to a greater depth than that to which the plow is
ordinarly driven and thus serve to make water ways and paths for the
roots of weaker species into the subsoil.

Although a certain amount of gain may be had by varying from
season to season the depth to which the plow is set and a yet greater
advantage from subsoiling, every description of plow is more or less
injurious to the soil through the smearing and compacting action which
it inflicts upon it. It is a most unfortunate limitation of agriculture
that spade tillage is so much more costly than that accomplished by
the plow. One of the greatest desiderata in connection with our farm¬
ing is an instrument which will overturn the earth in the manner of a
spade — that is, without compacting the lower portions of the deposit
in order to overturn the upper parts. Ao one who has carefully com¬
pared the condition and product of fields which have been long tilled by
these two instruments, the plow and the spade, can doubt the destructive
effect of the first-named tool. There seems to be no essential mechanical
difficulty in the way of the inventor who would seek to produce an in¬
strument which would delve the earth as does a spade. The amount of
power requisite to effect the overturning should certainly be much less
than that expended in the rude rending work which the plow effects.

It is a common practice to remove all or nearly all the woody matter
of our crops from the soil on which it has been produced. The result
of this process is that in a few years the earth comes to lack that share
of decaying organic substance which its normal functions require. It
should be remembered that in the state of nature soils have commonly
from 5 per cent to 20 per cent of their mass composed of such organic
debris; any considerable decrease in the amount of this material will
more or less completely arrest the processes by which mineral sub¬
stances are gradually brought into a state in which the plants can make
use of them. The introduction of this organic debris is partly accom¬
plished in tilled fields by allowing the weeds and other wild plants to
occupy the surface during a period of fallow. The waste from this

336

ORIGIN AND NATURE OE SOILS.

growth when turned in with the plow serves in a certain but generally
insufficient measure to secure by its decay the conditions necessary for
the solution of rocky matter in the earth. When, as is often the case,
this vegetable waste is burned before the ground is plowed, although
the mineral materials are returned to the soil in the form of ash, the
principal end is not attained. The only really effective way of main¬
taining the due share of organic matter in soils is to plow in well chosen
green crops. Even where, as on a small portion of our American fields,
barnyard manure is occasionally used, the quantity of vegetable waste
thus introduced into the soil is likely to be inadequate.

Wherever there is a considerable exportation of crops from any dis¬
trict it is impossible, save with extraordinary care, to avoid a diminu¬
tion in the fertility of the soil. The sale of each bushel of grain or
other product of the fields permanently removes a part of the resources
of the earth. However carefully the barnyard and other manures may
be gathered and returned to the field, this progressive waste is inev¬
itable. If the soil retains its fertility it is because of its speedy descent
into the underlying rocks. The rate at which the exhaustion proceeds
is generally in proportion to the immediate success of the agriculture.
Farming is, in general, a process of selling the birthright of those who
own the land.

A century ago it would have seemed to a considerate observer aware
of the principles above laid down that the progressive decadence of our
soils was something which jould not be contended against, and that
the process was sure in the end to bring every land to the state in
which its food-producing resources would be exhausted; but within the
last 50 years we have learned to seek in the mineral kingdom for vari¬
ous chemical substances which are removed from the soil by crops, and
which may thereby be returned to it in quantities required to maintain
its fertility. This use of mineral fertilizers, at least on an extended
scale, began with the introduction of guano, the dried waste of bird
life which had accumulated on the islands of a nearly rainless district
off the west coast of South America. Guano appears to have been ex¬
tensively used by the Peruvians long before the conquest of the con¬
tinent by the Spaniards. . It was first brought to Europe and intro¬
duced to the attention of agriculturists about the year 1840. Shortly
after that time a very extensive trade in the substance was established,
and in the course of twenty years it led to the substantial exhaustion
of the principal fields of supply. Owing to the increase in the price
of this substance the attention of chemists was called to the possibility
of making similar fertilizing materials, using as a basis the geologic
deposits of lime phosphate, soda, and potash. At first this new art
was practiced for the purpose of adulterating the natural guano; but,
unlike a majority of such sophistications, it has led to a new and most
important industry — that of manufacturing mineral manures.

The greater part of these artificially produced fertilizers consist of a

SHALER.]

MINERAL MANURES.

337

mixture of natural earths containing lime phosphates, etc., along with
fish-waste, blood, and other materials which afford ammoniacal mate¬
rials. It is now, however, becoming clear that excellent manures,
though they act less quickly upon the soil, may be produced altogether
from the mineral kingdom. Even the ammonia required to make com¬
pounds the most speedily effective may be obtained from materials
formed in the process of making gas or coke. It seems likely that the
principal ingredient of these fertilizing combinations most required in
ordinary crops and most deficient in soils, viz, the lime phosphate, may
soon be afforded in such quantity that it will be an easy matter each
year to restore to the earth all the substance which is withdrawn by
cropping. So rapid is the present advance in the arts whereby avail
is made of the mineral manures, that we may confidently anticipate the
time when from the rocks of the deeper earth we shall obtain the
means for restoring fertility to all soils where a reckless neglect of the
fields has not allowed the framework of debris to be utterly destroyed.

The amount of these mineral manures now known to exist is great
enough to meet the demand which would arise if the fertility of our soils
were to be perfectly maintained by their use for centuries to come, and
it seems likely that we have but begun to discover deposits of this nature
which exist in different parts of the world. Within five years, in Florida
alone, areas underlaid by lime phosphate have been brought to the
knowledge of the world which contain a sufficient quantity of that ma¬
terial to restore the fields of North America for generations to come.
Soda may be had in limitless quantities from common salt, and potash
abounds in a number of minerals, such as feldspar, from which the ex¬
traction is difficult, and in glauconite or green sand, whence it may
readily be separated. It seems likely that in the progress of art the meth¬
ods of preparing this last-named substance from common varieties of
rocks will become cheaper, and so the last of the more indispensable and
most easily exhausted of the fertilizing materials of the soil may be
supplied to the needs of the husbandman. When these mineral manures
come into general and skillful use agriculture will enter on a new stage
of existence; it will no longer be an art so gross in its methods as to
lead as now to a general destruction of the soil, but a science by whose
well devised means the fruitfulness of the earth will be constantly main¬
tained and enhanced.

The influence of soil products won by tillage on commercial and other
lines of development deserves a more extended notice than can be given
here. More than any other creature, civilized man has come to depend
upon the earth for a variety of needs, of which the primal and most
important are served by the soil. Although climate, geographic posi¬
tion, and the resources of the deeper earth have much to do with the
prosperity of our kind, the character of the soil as regards endurance
of tillage and the crops which it nurtures is of the first importance. It
is impossible for us to consider this matter broadly, but a few instances
12 geol - 22

338

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

may be given which will serve to show the reader how on this continent
the characteristics of soil have affected the history of its population in
various regions.

One of the first of the peculiar effects on the history of civilized man
in America brought about by the nature of the earth is found in the
circumstances attending the culture of the tobacco plant. This vege¬
table proved peculiarly well suited to the soil of Virginia and Maryland,
and therefore, even in the first century of the history of the colony, it
became the principal staple in their trade with the Old World. On the
returns given by this industry the political and social culture of the
central colonies of the Atlantic coast chiefly rested. To it also in the
main was due the profitable and rapid extension of African slavery.
In a similar manner the soils of the more southern States proved in the
present century well adapted to the culture of cotton, a crop which led
to the establishment of large and numerous plantations, and thus to the
further diffusion and firmer establishment of the slaveholding system.
Though in part due to climatic features, this system by which the de¬
scendants of Africans were held as slaves is principally to be accounted
for by the characteristics of the earth in southern States. If that part of
the country had been provided with soils like those in Xew England it
would have had a very different economic and political history.

We perceive the effects of soil on the diffusion of slavery in a yet
clearer manner when we examine into the features characteristic of the
local distribution in States in which it was by law established. In the
plain lands, where the soil is adapted to cotton or tobacco, slavery was
dominant, indeed we may say universal; but in mountain areas, where
the small fields could not be profitably tilled by slaves, the institution
never found a place. In eastern Kentucky and in parts of western Vir¬
ginia and Vo r th Carolina negroes have always been exceedingly rare.
There are populous counties in this region where no member of that
race has ever been a resident either as slave or freeman. This absence
of slaveholders in the hilly and mountainous portions of the South nat¬
urally had a great effect in the issue of the civil war which that insti¬
tution caused. The people of this rugged country of the Appalachians
did not to any extent sympathize with, and often took up arms against,
the slaveholding communities of the lowlands. As this non slaveholding
district almost cut the South in twain, its influence on the conditions of
the contest were momentous. Something like the same effect was per¬
ceptible in single States. Thus in Kentucky we find that a majority of
the people on the richer lands where it was profitable to keep slaves
were led to cast their lot with their kindred of the same class in other
parts of the South, while those dwelling on poorer soils, where they knew
nothing of the institution, were overwhelmingly on the Federal side in
the debate. It seems almost certain that if Kentucky had been provided
with a uniformly rich soil, suited to large plantations, it would have
joined the other Southern States, to the great advantage of the Confed-

SHALEK.]

EFFECT OF SOIL ON HISTORY OF MAN

339

erates and to the serious injury of the Federal cause. In a. struggle so
nearly matched this difference might have been of decisive importance.

Not only in the doubtful issue of the war but also in the more com¬
putable triumphs of peace the character of soil in this country has
greatly influenced the history of its people. A striking instance of this
effect may be noted in the advance of population from the seaboard
district into the Mississippi Valley. Thus, while it required nearly two
centuries for the English colonies of the Atlantic coast to break their
way through the rough country of the Alleghanies and then through
the dense forests of the lowland region in the eastern part of the Ohio
Valley to the margin of the prairie land of the West, fifty years has
served to win to their uses the yet greater area of the timberless or
lightly wooded country of the Far West. Although something of this
speedy contest must be attributed to the rapid diffusion of railway and
steamboat transportation, yet more is to be allowed to the influence of
the open nature and easy subjugability of the soil m these areas. ItJs
clearly one thing to push forward the frontiers of a civilization where
each acre has to be slowly and laboriously stripped of its timber and, if
it be in a glaciated district, of its bowlders also, and it is quite another
undertaking to extend cultivation over a prairie district where a plow
man may turn a straight furrow for miles away from his starting point.
An incidental but closely related effect of this open state of the land m
the central and western portions of the Mississippi Valley is seen in the
rapid increase of population in this country and the great commercial
prosperity which it has attained. The influence of the breadth of this
region has not only been felt in the States which have sprung up like
magic in the Northwest, but in the Eastern States as well. The popu
lation of the Unites States would probably at the present time be some
millions less than it is if the central part of the continent had been
densely wooded as far west as the one hundredth meridian.

It would be possible very much to extend the citation of these
instances in which conditions of soil have determined, in a certain
measure at least, the history of our people; we can, however, instance
but one other example serving to show how even the system in which
the land is held in ownership may be shaped by the character of surface
material. The island of Nantucket, Massachusetts, owing to the fact
that nearly the whole of its area is composed either of glacial moraine or
of extensive sand plains which usually attend these heaps of debris, has,
save in limited parts, a very thin soil not generally fit for tillage. The
result is that until within a few years the greater part of the land was
held in common, or jointly by the people, each owner being entitled to
a share in the pasturage rights of the area. If lie held, for instance,
twelve such rights, he could turn out a dozen sheep to graze on the
uninclosed field. Thus, owing to the nature of the soil, we had here
perpetuated, in the latter half of the nineteenth century, a form of land
tenure which is a survival from a remote time and represents a gen¬
erally disused system of holding real property.

340

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

EFFECTS OF SOILS ON HEALTH.

Tl»e influences of the soil upon the health of man and that of his
domesticated animals, though perhaps less considerable than those
which directly arise from climate, are still of great importance. The
cause and nature of these effects are extremely varied and deserve
more attention than they have received. It is only in recent years that
the nature and origin of diseases have been to any extent accurately
known, and therefore the time of such studies has been brief. It will
therefore not be possible to make many definite and readily comprehen¬
sible statements concerning this division of our subject.

The action of soils in producing or promoting disease in animals or
man appears to be due to at least three different causes, viz :

First. The quantity of water retained in the earth immediately de¬
termines the humidity of the surface of the soil, and this may have a
direct effect on the comfort and health of man and beast.

Secondly. The conditions of this soil water, as well as of the organic
matter mingled with it, have a decided influence on the nourishment of
many forms of bacteria which it is now well known are sources of disease.
The germs of such maladies as cholera, typhoid and malarial fevers,
tetanus or lockjaw, and numerous other maladies appear generally to
require a residence below the surface of the earth before they can
propagate their effects. In fact the larger part of the diseases which
occur among human beings and probably a great number of those
which afflict our domesticated animals appear to be traceable to the
action x>f certain microscopical organisms that inhabit the soil in the.
regions where the maladies occur.

Thirdly. Some influence of the soil upon health is due to the quality
it gives to drinking water obtained from ordinary springs or wells.
Although, for convenience of presentation, we may thus separate the
influence of ground water upon health into these three classes, the
groups are in fact not thus distinct, but are inextricably blended.

One of the immediate effects of excessive humidity of the soil is to
keep the feet of creatures which tread upon it in a condition to favor
disease. I Thus sheep in wet pastures are more likely to suffer from .
foot diseases than those in dry fields, the continual moisture of the
parts making them a suitable nest for the development of certain germs.
Dwellings of men are made humid by excessive ground water, which also
favors the growth of certain noxious organisms. This is well shown by
the coating of mold which often forms in the lower parts of houses, where
the earth is soaked with water. Although the more common forms of this
growth are not detrimental to health, the circumstances which favor
their development appear to lead to the multiplication of disease
bringing spores. There are other direct evils connected with excessive '
humidity. When the air is very wet, as is the case near very humid
soils, it appears to have a lowering effect on the vitality of men — at
least when they are in certain states of health.

SHA1.ER.]

EFFECT OF VARYING HEIGHT OF GROUND WATER. 341

From a sanitary point of view. the direct effects of excessive ground
water are evidently of small consequence as compared with the second¬
ary influences of this evil, which are due to the nurture and dissemi¬
nation of the germs which it induces. It appears probable that the
spores, by means of which many diseases are propagated, undergo
multiplication altogether in the organic matter contained in the soil,
In the opinion of trustworthy observers the development of these
germs takes place most effectively, and they are most likely to be dis¬
charged into the air in those regions where the vertical range of the
ground water varies greatly, especially during the warmer part of the
year. The reason for this is, probably, that when the vertical oscilla¬
tions of the ground water occur the air 'is alternately drawn down into
and expelled from the interstices of the soil. As this air enters it bears
with it quantities of germs which, descending along with the rainwater,
plant themselves upon decaying bits of animal and vegetable matter
which the earth contains. If, after these spores have multiplied, the
soil water again rises to the surface, it bears the crop with it, leaving
the material on the top of the ground, where it may be scattered by
the wind. When the soil water rises the contained air is expelled and
may also bear with it a share of the noxious materials. Where the
water of the soil remains at nearly a level the germs are not only less
likely to enter the earth, but those which develop there are unable to
escape from their underground prison and perish where they grew.

This view of the action of oscillating ground water finds much sup¬
port from the experience of men in and around extensive morasses such
as the Dismal Swamp of Virginia and North Carolina. About the
margin of that great, area of marshes, where the ground is alternately
wetted and dried to a considerable depth, the people suffer from ague, a
disease which is generally believed to bWeaused by' 'some species of
germ developed within the earth, but in the interior of the swamp,
where the ground water varies little in its height from one season to
another, there seems to be a relative, or, in cases, an entire immunity
from this malady. Similar evidence is found in the history of intermit¬
tent fever in regions which have recently been subjected to cultivation;
thus in many parts of the Ohio Valley the early settlers suffered much
from this disease, but as obstructions to streams were gradually removed
and wet places drained, so that soil water was no longer brought to the
surface, this disease has to a great extent disappeared. There seems to
be good reason to believe that where the earth has had a chance to
become charged with seeds of disease, as about dwellings and ceme¬
teries, any overturning of the soil may lead to the propagation of mala¬
dies through the mingling of the spores and the air thus brought about.
In the open fields the same effect on germs of soil are doubtless pro¬
duced, but in such localities spores probably belong to species which are
not so likely to be harmful to man as those which develop about habi¬
tations or in the resting places of the dead.

342

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

The health of people in Holland, in the fens of eastern England, and
in similar wet districts in many other parts of the world seems clearly to
show that, whatever be the way in which it acts, a variable level of un¬
derground water tends to breed disease, while its permanent position,
even if it remain near the surface, is not inconsistent with the good
health of the inhabitants. So long as the fens of England and the
swamps of the Netherlands remained in their natural state and under¬
went frequent and extensive changes of water level they were generally
the seats of malarial disease. Now that the drainage system retains
the ground water at about a uniform height these maladies are rare.

In the ideal condition of a tilled district the level of the soil waters
is likely to be favorable to health. The aim of the husbandman is to
maintain the earth in a state where the water rarely, if ever, rises to
the surface. Care as to this point is most desirable, because where water
emerges from the soil or stands upon it the effect is to take away by
the leaching process a much larger amount of soluble materials than
ordinarily escapes by drainage which passes to the stream by way of
the spring. Thus the use of underground drains, which serve to keep
the soil water at a tolerably definite level, is of great advantage to the
earth by restricting the leaching process, and it incidentally serves to
diminish the danger which may arise from the escape of germs.

There is reason to believe that the growth of certain kinds of germs
within the soil is in a way helpful to fertility; it is indeed likely that the
process by which various important substances are brought into a con¬
dition to be assimilated by plants is, in certain ways, dependent on the
action of these minute organisms, so that the spore-breeding work of
the soil, which now and then leads to the injury of man, is only an inci¬
dental part of what may be an essential function.

There is reaso%^o believe that, owing to the peculiarities of certain
soils, they become especially suited to the development of particular
kinds of germs. Thus in certain districts in and adjacent to Long
Island, New York, the disease known as tetanus, or lockjaw, is of un¬
usually common occurrence among men and animal^. It is the opinion
of experts in medical science that this malady is caused by some species
of soil-inhabiting bacterian which invests this part of the country. It
is observed that a wound which is formed by any object covered with
earthy matter is particularly likely to give rise to the disease. Although
this malady has been common in parts of Long Island for many years,
the evil has never spread to the contiguous portions of the shore east
of Point Judith. As there must have been abundant opportunities for
the spread of the germs in this direction it seems reasonable to attribute
their failure to extend to some peculiarities of the soil covering.

- The last effects of the soil upon health which we shall notice are those
arising from the use of drinking water derived from this detrital layer.
Injuries from this source are commonly due to the fact that ground water
is usually full of germs of various kinds developed in that part of the

3HALER.]

CONDITIONS OF DANGEROUS WATER SUPPLY.

343

earth from which the spring or well drains. It may often happen that
the water flows through the earth for a distance of hundreds of feet
before it attains the point where it is taken for use. In the course of
this journey it generally becomes abundantly charged with spores. The
greater part of these germs are innocuous, but if the earth contains the
organisms which produce cholera, typhoid fever, or other ferment dis¬
eases, it is quite possible that a very small portion of the soil water can
convey the disease.

Besides the disease-breeding organic germs, ground water also in
many cases contains various mineral substances which may be harmful
to man or the animals which he associates with his life. A familiar
instance of this is found in the effects arising from the large amount of
limy matter which exists in the ground water of most limestone dis¬
tricts. This substance comes into a state of solution through the
capacity which carbonic-acid gas gives to water for taking up and dis¬
solving various minerals. This gas is derived from decaying organic
matter in the soil ; but for the presence of this dissolved gas the ground
water would have a mere trace of lime in solution, but owing to its pres¬
ence the fluid is able to take up a notable quantity which, though in¬
visible, makes its presence evident by the hardness and flat taste which
it imparts. A common effect of this excess of lime is to produce in
the bodies of men, and sometimes in those of domesticated animals as
well, concretions of a calcareous nature which cause disease. In certain
parts of limestone districts of this and other countries maladies due to
this cause are of very frequent occurrence.

Fig. 27. — Diagram allowing one of the ordinary conditions of a dangerous water supply, a, bed-rock1;
6, soil and other permeable detritus; c, well whence domestic supply is taken; d, dwelling house; e,
cesspool ; /, barn ; the arrows show the direction in which the soil water moves.

Where the ground water is suspected of being the source of disease,
the evils it entails may readily be avoided by the use of cisterns to
which only the water draining from clean roofs has access. Except in
cases where such a supply is defiled, as by a resort of pigeons to the
roof or by careless construction of the reservoirs which permits the in¬
gress of soil water, they afford absolutely safe sources for domestic use.

It seems likely that, with the advance of medical science on the lines
of its present extension, many diseases of a geographical and limited
nature, the causes of which are yet unexplained, will be found to be
attributable to the action of the soil in the regions where they occur.
Thus the peculiar malady called goitre, which is limited to certain moun¬
tain valleys, is now by some students explained as being due to the action
of the water which the people drink. In the present state of the science

344

ORIGIN AND NATURE OF SOILS.

of hygiene the only certain points of value which we have to consider
concern the influence of the soil water on the development and diffusion
of germs. Where the domestic supply is obtained from the earth it
appears essential to the health of a household that the spring or well
should be so placed that none of the waste from the dwelling, barns, or
stables can contaminate it (see Fig. 27). It appears, furthermore, im¬
portant that proper drainage should be so arranged that the level of
the soil water is not liable to sudden alteration. Furthermore, it appears
to be undesirable to have the soil near the dwelling overturned while
the house is occupied. This is especially the case where the residence
has been long in use.

Although the distance to which germs may be carried in the under¬
ground water is not readily determinable, it may be assumed that there
is no safety in using the flow from a large spring where any part of the
valley in which it lies is occupied by dwellings the sites of which are
above the point of exit. The underground channels of such fountains
often have a very extended and circuitous course; the water ways, so
far as they are carved in "the bed rock, are wide open, so that poisonous
matter may in a few hours be transported through them for a distance
of several miles.

If the space of this report permitted, many instances could be given
in which cholera and other fatal diseases had thus been conveyed for
great distances. Springs of slight creeping flow and ordinary wells
where the water does not enter at one point but seeps in from the side
of the excavation, do not usually drain from a distance of more than
200 or 300 feet from the point where the water escapes. • It should, how¬
ever, be remembered that there is sufficient evidence to prove that
germs of certain diseases may remain in the soil for several years with
undiminished vitality. These germs may by some chauce journey go
unexpected and considerable distances. Where ground water is used
at all for domestic purposes, the only safe way is to take it from a level
above all sources of possible contamination.

man’s duty to the earth.

The foregoing considerations concerning the origin and nature of soils,
though but a brief and inadequate presentation of the subject-matter,
will xirobably convince the reader that this part of the earth which at
first sight seems to be a mere mass of ruin and abasement is really a mar¬
velously well ordered and beautiful portion of this sphere. In it the
celestial and terrestrial energies combine their work to lift the mineral
elements up to the higher planes of sentient life. From it comes the
sustenance of plants and animals, both of sea and land. The frame of
man is the product of its forces; his form is indeed but a bit of soil up¬
lifted for a moment to the noblest shape of life, then bidden to return
to the garner of the earth. Through the ordered and harmonious inter¬
action of the complicated forces which effect in the soil the combined

SHA1ER.]

SYSTEM OF LAND TENURE.

345

decay of rocks and of organic bodies, materials which seem base and
revolting to many fastidious spirits are made the unique basis of all
sentient existence. When we perceive that civilization rests on the
food-giving capacities of the soil, when we perceive that all the future
advance of our kind depends upon the preservation and enhancement
of its fertility, we are in a position to consider the duty which we owe
to it. This obligation bids us nurture and care for this part of the earth
with an exceeding tenderness and affection. Tt bids us ever remem¬
ber that it is enriched with the dust of our progenitors, and is teeming
with the life which is to come.

In shaping these motives to practice it seems first of all necessary to
clear away those crude and indeed painful notions which lead men to
look with contempt and disgust upon the soil. If there be any of the
great truths of modern learning which more than any others deserve to
be imprinted on the minds of youth, it is these lessons as to the nature
and function of this beneficent part of the earth. Only through knowl¬
edge can we hope to bring men to a proper understanding of the value of
the trust which is in their keeping. Until by education we bring people
to a consciousness that the wanton neglect of their duty to their kind
which an improvident use of the soil reveals is a form of treason to man¬
kind, we can not hope to implant in them a proper sense of responsibility
in the management of their great inheritance.

It is characteristic of our time that men seek to clear away evils by
means of law. There is a general discontent with the results which have
been obtained by the system of individual ownership of land and a grow¬
ing disposition to qualify and limit the nature of that x>ossession. In
considering the questions as to the ways in which the earth’s resources
shall be administered, it is clearly necessary to bear in mind the needs
of exceeding care in the preservation of the fertility of the earth. As
long as lands are in the state of forest or prairie, the admirably adjusted
forces of nature will insure their preservation. When they become
tilled, it is imperative that they be peculiarly well guarded; any legis¬
lation concerning the tenure of land should be devised in view of the fact
that we need to have not less but more personal interest and sense of
responsibility in the management of these problems. It is not proper
here to consider the probable effect of the various proposed modifica¬
tions of the land laws. It seems, however, fit that any such changes as
may be made should be planned with a clear understanding of the very
serious nature of the needs. When in the future a proper sense of the
relations of the soil to the necessities of man have been attained and
diffused we may be sure that our successors will look back upon our
present administration of this great trust with amazement and disgust ;
they will see that a state of society in which men took no care of the
rights which the generations to come have in the earth lacks one of the
most essential elements of a true civilization.

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

W J McGrEE.

■ „ ’ , ■ , , ;

CONTENTS.

Page.

Chapter I. The area occupied by the formation . 353

The physiographic provinces . 353

The configuration of the coastal plain . 360

The general geology of the coastal plain . 380

The method of classification . 380

The Columbia formation . 384

The Grand Gulf formation . 408

The Chesapeake formation . 410

The Vicksburg-Jackson limestone . 412

The Claiborne-Meridian . 413

The Lignitic deposits . 415

The Pamunkey formation . 418

The upper Cretaceous . 419

The Severn formation . 421

The Potomac and Tuscaloosa formations . .. 421

R6sum<5 . 424

Chapter II. The features of the formation . 430

The features in detail . 430

The general features . 489

Chapter III. Definition and synonymy of the formation . 497

Definition . 497

Synonymy . 498

Chapter IV. Material resources of the formation . 503

State of the survey . 503

Soils . 503

Siliceous clays . 505

Gravel . 506

Iron . 506

Chapter V. The history recorded in the formation . 507

The antecedent physiography . 507

The Lafayette deposition . 508

The Lafayette degradation . 511

The burial of the Lafayette . 514

The relations of the continent movements . 515

349

IL LUSTRATIONS.

Page.

Plate XXXII. Physiography of the coastal plain of southeastern United

States . In pocket.

XXXIII. Columbia and Potomac formations on Ensor street, between

Preston and Biddle, Baltimore .

XXXIV. Relations of Lafayette and Tuscaloosa formations ; Cotton-

dale, Alabama . .

XXXV. Typical exposure of the Lafayette, near the Chattahoochee

River .

XXXVI. Relations of Columbia, Lafayette and Potomac formations;

Columbia, South Carolina .

XXXVII. Typical exposure of the Lafayette formation in the District

of Columbia . .

XXXVIII. Areal distribution of Columbia and Lafayette forma¬
tions . In pocket.

XXXIX. Physiography of the coastal plain during the Lafayette

period . In pocket.

XL. Physiography of the coastal plain during post-Lafayette and

pre-Columbia period . In pocket.

XLI. Physiography of the coastal plain during the Columbia

period . In pocket.

390

395

396

397

398

399

426

427

427
427

427

428
428

Fig. 28. “ Second bottom” phase of the Columbia formation, near Columbus,
Georgia .

29. Brown loam with silt layer at base; Arsenal Cut, Baton Rouge, Lou¬

isiana .

30. Relation of brown loam to silty beds and Port Hudson clays; Port

Hickey, Louisiana . ' .

31. Brown loam with silt bed and gravel beds near base; Bayou Sara,

Louisiana .

32. Loess resting on stratified sand, near Natchez, Mississippi .

33. Landslip contact between loess and stratified sand ; 1 mile south of

Natchez, Mississippi .

34. General section through inner portion of the coastal plain in the middle

Atlantic slope .

35. General section through coastal plain in southern Atlantic slope .

36. General section through the coastal plain in eastern Gulf slope (Chat¬

tahoochee River) .

37. General section through the coastal plain in eastern Gulf slope (western

Alabama) . .• .

38. General section through the coastal plain in the Mississippi embay-

ment .

39. Later continental oscillations of middle Atlantic slope .

40. Continental oscillations of middle and southern Atlantic slopes .

386

474

480

484

488

351

352

ILLUSTRATIONS.

Page.

Fig. 41. Neozoic continental oscillations of eastern Gulf slope (Chattahoochee

River) . 429

42. Neozoic continental oscillations of eastern Gulf slope (western Ala¬

bama) . i . 429

43. Neozoic continental oscillation of Mississippi embaymeut . 429

44. Denudation of the Lafayette sands by modern erosion ; near Laurel

Hill, Louisiana . 434

45. Typical “gulf” exposing the Columbia and Lafayette formations;

near Fort Adams, Mississippi . 435

46. Typical contact between Columbia and Lafayette formations; near

Fort Adams, Mississippi . 436

47. Typical “gut;” 3 miles east of Fort Adams, Mississippi . 437

48. Relations of Columbia, Lafayette, and Grand Gulf formations; near

Fort Adams, Mississippi . . . 438

49. Columbia and Lafayette formations as exposed in a typical “gulf;”

near Port Gibson, Mississippi . ...... . 442

50. Erosion forms of theLafayette formation ; 5 miles north of Port Gibson,

Mississippi . . . 443

51. Lafayette erosion forms; 5 miles south of Rocky Springs, Mississippi. 444

52. Lafayette erosion forms ; Rocky Springs, Mississippi . 445

53. Lafayette erosion forms ; Rocky Springs, Mississippi . 446

54. Relations of Columbia and Lafayette formations near Jackson, Mis¬

sissippi . 448

55. Relations between Columbia and Lafayette formations near Durant,

Mississippi . 450

56. Structure of the Lafayette formation ; near Water Valley, Mississippi . 455

57. Pseudo unconformity in the Lafayette formation; near Oxford, Mis¬

sissippi . . . : . 456

58. Structure of the Lafayette formation; at Oxford, Mississippi . 457

59. Structure of the Lafayette formation; near Waterford, Mississippi. .. 458

60. Structure of the Lafayette formation ; near Holly Springs, Mississippi . 459

61. Structure of the Lafayette formation; near Lagrange, Tennessee . 460

62. Forest bed between Columbia and Lafayette formations; Lagrange,

Tennessee . 461

63. Structure of Lafayette formation ; Lagrange, Tennessee . . 462

64. Structure of Lafayette formation ; 1 mile west of Lagrange, Tennessee. 463

65. Structure of Lafayette formation ; Lagrange, Tennessee . 464

66. Structure of Lafayette formation; near Hickory Valley, Tennessee .. 465

67. Section developed by artesian boring at Memphis, Tennessee . 466

68. Structure of Lafayette formation ; near Mayfield, Kentucky . 468

69. Structure of the Lafayette formation ; near Mayfield, Kentucky . 469

70. Contact between Lafayette and Eocene deposits; 3 miles northwest of

Malvern, Arkansas . 471

71. Graphic epitome of Eafayette history . 520

72. Graphic epitomg^of later geologic history of the coastal plain . 520

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

By W J McGee.

CHAPTER I.

THE AREA OCCUPIED BY THE FORMATION.

THE PHYSIOGRAPHIC PROVINCES.

Eastern United States falls naturally into five well defined provinces.
Beginning on tlie west, there is the Mississippi valley, a low-lying land of
prairies in the north, of woodlands in the northeast, and of luxuriant for¬
ests and smooth savannas in the south. Next follows the province some¬
times called the Cumberland plateau, a land of rounded hills, rugged
valleys, and deep ravines, generally forest clad. The boundary between
valley and plateau is ill defined. Beyond the plateau rise the long, low
mountains of the Appalachian system, which forms a notable physio¬
graphic feature, and one unique among the montanic tracts of the globe
hy reason of the length and symmetry of the component ranges. This
constitutes the third natural province.

The Appalachian Mountains stretch from central Alabama, where
their corrugated strata rise from beneath newer deposits, to southeastern
New York, where the symmetric corrugations die out. Other moun¬
tains rear their massive bulk farther northeastward, but the Helder-
bergs and Catskills belong rather to the plateau province than to the
Appalachian series ; the Adirondacks constitute a unit by themselves ;
while New England, with its peaks and foothills and undulating plains,
may be either a distinct province, as defined by the systemist, or a modi¬
fied homologue and extension of the province next eastward from the
Appalachians. The western boundary of tlie Appalachian province is
commonly vague, for the flat-lying strata of the plateau become corru¬
gated gradually ; but the eastern boundary is commonly trenchant, since
the easternmost element for many hundred miles is a rarely interrupted
ridge of hard quartzite. This rugged range, broken only by the water
gaps of the James, the Potomac, and the Susquehanna, and by a few
wind gaps, lay beyond the realm of the mighty Powhatan, and, half hid
in the hazy blue of the distance, was long the horizon'of the Virginia pio¬
neer ; and all the way from the colony of Lord Baltimore, on the Patux-
12 geol - 23 353

354

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

cut, to the settlement of the Byrds, on the James, the haze-haunted
and vision-limiting barrier became the “ blue ridge.” Long afterward
it barred even the most adventurous home-seekers from the limestone-
floored valley at its western base, the fair and fertile Valley of Virginia,
or Shenandoah Valley, or Cumberland Valley, as designated by the
settlers in its different portions.

East of the Blue Bidge lies an undulating tract, stretching from
Georgia to New Jersey, lower and less deeply ravined than the Cum¬
berland plateau, sometimes rising into scattered knobs or isolated hill
ranges, but commonly inclining gently eastward, once among the fairest
of the Indian hunting grounds; but the aboriginal hunters were dis¬
placed by the descendants of Lord Baltimore, Colonel Byrd, and their
contemporaries that the game-filled woodlands might be transformed
into tobacco fields. Clear rivers heading in the Blue Bidge or in the
mountain fastnesses beyond traverse it; other streams gather their
waters on the plateau itself, and the uniting waterways cut deeper
their channels as they approach the eastern margin of the plateau on
their way to the sea. So the configuration of the plain varies from west
to east. Toward the western margin isolated hills, pygmy homologues
of the Blue Bidge, relieve its monotony, though the valleys are shallow ;
toward its eastern margin the waterways are deep, though the hills
are low and broad : in the west the features are embossed ; in the east
they are incised. This is the Piedmont plateau. It is the fourth prin¬
cipal province.

In the Mississippi basin the rocks are flat-lying strata of limestone,
shale and sandstone, with many nodules and sheets of chert. In the
Cumberland plateau the strata are similar, save that they are more sandy
and are lifted higher, so that the waters have cut their ways more deeply.
In the Appalachian region the strata are again similar, save that they
are less cherty and coarser in materials in certain beds, and that they are
corrugated and lifted still higher; but in the Piedmont plateau the rocks
are ancient crystallines (schists, gneisses, and granites), sometimes with¬
out definite structure, again obscurely bedded and strongly tilted, and
often cut by veins of quartz. These crystalline rocks are deeply de¬
cayed, and the principal product of their decay is the u red land ” soil
of Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, and Maryland.

Between the red lands of the Piedmont plateau and the waters of the
Atlantic, in the latitude of Virginia and Maryland, lies a lowland tract
trenched by broad but shallow estuaries, primevally wooded, and before
the advent of the whites the home of aboriginal fishermen whose kitclieif
middens, village sites, and scattered stone implements yet remain to
reward the seeker for unwritten history. The present seaward limit of
this coastal plain is the Atlantic shore line of maps. The common boun¬
dary between the realm of man and his air-breathing kindred and the
realm of the lower orders of life is a line of the class first recognized and
most strongly drawn by the geographer ; yet from the standpoint of the

MrGEE.]

THE COASTED PLAIN HALF SUBMERGED.

355

student of earth changes it is a fortuitous and curiously evanescent de¬
marcation. The terrestial limit of the coastal lowland is not the true
limit of the province, for the land surface continues with scarcely modified
configuration and unchanged slope a hundred miles beneath the waters
of the Atlantic to a great scarp, comparable in height and extent with
majestic mountain ranges, forming the continental margin. Moreover,
the sands- of the sea are scattered over the land portion of the coastal
plain, while river channels meander through the submerged portion,
showing that during the more recent eons of geologic time the sea lias
alternately advanced and receded over the whole breadth of the plain ;
and this is true not only of the middle Atlantic slope but in nearly equal
degree elsewhere along the Atlantic and the Gulf.

This physiographic fact is fundamental : the forest-clad lowland skirt¬
ing the coast is but half of an essentially indivisible natural province,
of which the other half is submerged beneath a few fathoms of seawater.

The Mississippi Valley is vaguely defined ; the Cumberland plateau
begins with the limestone uplands of northwestern Alabama and ends
with the Helderberg Mountains in central New York; the Appalachians
stretch from central Alabama nearly to the Hudson ; the Piedmont plain
runs from Georgia and the Carolinas with diminishing width to the
mouth of the Hudson, where it is supposed to terminate or to cross that
river in a narrow neck and then expand to make most of New England;
but while the lateral limits of the coastal plain are more clearly drawn
than those of any other province, its longitudinal limits are more vague
and much more remote. All New England is skirted by its subaqueous
development, and its bulk is lifted above the present waters of the At¬
lantic in Cape Cod, in Nantucket and Marthas Vineyard, in Long Island
and its lesser neighbors. The subaqueous portion of the plain continues
southward without break save by submerged river channels beyond
Cape Hatteras to the extremity of the Florida peninsula, while the sub¬
aerial portion, insulated in the north by the Hudson, recommences with
Sandy Hook and expands rapidly southward, and, although interrupted
by the bays of the Delaware, Susquehanna, and other rivers, and
by the Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds, makes the coastal lowlands in
a hundred-mile zone sweeping around the continental bulge of Cape
Hatteras to the Florida isthmus; and probably all Florida belongs to
this province. Thence the land portion of the province continues west¬
ward, fringing the extremities of the Piedmont and Appalachian prov¬
inces, stretching up the Mississippi in a relatively narrow point to the
mouth of the Ohio, and thence sweeping south westward in a zone 100
to 200 miles wide to the mouth of the Eio Grande; while the shallow
Gulf waters are shoaled by a submerged shelf 50 to 100 miles broad,
forming its legitimate extension.

So the submerged portion of the coastal plain stretches from New¬
foundland to Mexico; the subaerial portion, which alone is open to ob¬
servation by the student of earth lore, runs from Cape Cod nearly to

356

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Yucatan, while the continuous lowland, which is of first importance in
the present connection, expands from Sandy Hook to the Florida isth¬
mus, and continues with scarce diminished width to the national bound¬
ary on the Rio Grande. Attention may be confined chiefly to this low¬
land, but it is to be constantly borne in mind that the coastal lowland
is but half of the coastal plain. The entire plain is depicted in the map
forming Plate xxxii, in which, be it observed, the contours are located
with care, yet can be regarded only as approximations, by reason of the
dearth of definite data, as well as by reason of the small scale.

The common boundary of the coastal plain and the Piedmont plateau
is usually trenchant, though sometimes inconspicuous. Between the
Hudson and the Tuscaloosa (or Black Warrior) the rivers cross it in
cascades or rapids, and the boundary is thus known industrially and
geographically as the “fall line.” Between the Raritan and the Roanoke
the rivers cascade from rock-lined channels of the Piedmont type into
tidal estuaries, but farther southward the fall line is above sea level,
the pools below the cascades rising from tide water on the James to 100
feet on the Neuse at Smithfield, 125 feet on the Wateree near Camden,
125 feet on the Congaree near Columbia, 125 feet on the Savannah at
Augusta, 210 feet on the Ogeecliee near Mayfield, 220 feet on the Oconee
at Mellville, 250 feet on the Ocmulgee at Macon, 210 feet on the Chatta¬
hoochee at Columbus, 175 feet on the Tallapoosa near Tuskegee, IGOfeet
on the Coosa near Wetumpka, 150 feet on the Tuscaloosa at the town
of the same name. Then the drainage lines fail to mark the boundary
to the Mississippi at the mouth of the Ohio, 270 feet above tide; and
thence southward the. fall line is less conspicuous, though the rivers
cross it at large angles, as on the Atlantic slope. Between the rivers
the lowland and the plateau merge through an intermediate zone from
a fraction of a mile to a dozen miles in width; yet from the standpoints
of the systemist and the settler alike the provinces are distinct, even
strongly contrasted. It is true that the boundary is never a cliff, and
seldom a well defined scarp ; it is equally true that the terrace plains
recording the last submergence of the lowlands sometimes overlap the
line of junction; it is none the less true that there are hills on both
sides of the boundary, and that sometimes, particularly in the south,
the lowland hills are nearly as rugged and more than half as high as
the Piedmont hills; yet the boundary remains, notably in the middle
Atlantic slope, one of the most strongly marked physiographic and cul
tural lines on the surface of the globe. On the one hand lie the crystal¬
line rocks, giving origin to a characteristic soil through which all the
streams from the greatest rivers to the smallest creeks flow in narrow
gorges as a succession of cataracts or rapids, while on the other hand
there is a series of incoherent and undisturbed deposits of clay, sand,
and gravel, through which the waters move sluggishly in broad tidal
■estuaries in the north and narrower canals of low declivity in the

M'QEE.]

INFLUENCE OF PHYSIOGRAPHY ON MAN.

357

south. In the north the line of the falls is also a line of deflection in
the rivers ; the great waterways maintain their courses through Appa¬
lachian ranges and Piedmont highlands alike, yet on reaching the
coastal lowland they are turned aside literally by a sand bank little
higher than their depth, and thence ling the hard rock margin for miles
or scores of miles before finding their way into the open ocean. In the
south the same tendency is displayed by the Tallapoosa and Alabama
Rivers, and again very curiously by the Tennessee, although most of
the southern rivers maintain their directions in passing from the more
elevated provinces upon the coastal lowlands. Viewed systematically,
the physiographic facts of the adjoining provinces are diverse as the
rocks. On the one hand the waterways, the valleys in which they lie,
the hills which they have fashioned, all surface features, are the product
of base-level planation with subsequent active corrasion effected as the
land was lifted, so that the courses of the waterways, the forms of the
valleys, the configuration of the hills, the entire topography, reflect
the characters of the rocks; while on the other hand the waterways, the
valleys, the hills, the entire surface, represent the work of streams born
upon plains newly emerged from the sea, and to-day either flow upon
these plains or are superimposed upon older plains laid bare by the
erosion of the newer, so that the waterways, valleys, hills, and entire
topography reflect conditions growing out of the general attitude of the
lowland and are independent of the rock characters.

Along the fall line, as in other parts of the world, the natural fea- -
tures have materially affected man and his activities : In the north, where
the boundary is most trenchant, this effect has already been pointed
out.

The pioneer settlers of the country ascended the tidal canals to the falls of the
rivers, where they found sometimes within a mile clear, fresh water, the game of the
hills and woodlands and the fish and fowl of the estuaries, and as the population
increased, abundant water power and excellent mill sites, easy ferriage and practi¬
cable bridge sites. Here the pioneer settlements and towns were located, and across
the necks of the inter-estuarine peninsulas the pioneer routes of travel were
extended from settlement to settlement, until the entire Atlantic slope was traversed
by a grand social and commercial artery stretching from New England to the Gulf
States. As the population grew and spread, the settlements, villages, and towns
along this line of nature’s selection waxed, and many of them yet retain their early
prestige; for Trenton, Philadelphia, Wilmington, Baltimore, Washington, Freder¬
icksburg, Richmond, and Petersburg are among the survivors of the pioneer settle¬
ments ; and the early stage route has become a great railway and telegraph line,
connecting North and South as they were connected of old in a more primitive
fashion.1

Although the boundary is less trenchant in the south than in the
north, yet it remains the most important structural line of eastern
United States. It marks the junction of the unconsolidated and prac¬
tically undisturbed Veozoic elastics on the seaward side, at first with the
Piedmont crystallines, then with the corrugated Paleozoic strata of the

‘American Journal of Science, 3d series, vol. 35, 1888, p. 123.

358

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

southern Appalachians, next with the flat-lying Paleozoic strata of the
Cumberland plateau and the Mississippi Valley, and finally with the
sometimes horizontal and sometimes disturbed Paleozoic strata and
ancient eruptives between the Mississippi and the Eio Grande; and on
reaching it most of the streams, great and small, are broken by rocky
rapids, great falls, or cascades. Over the southern Atlantic and Gulf
slopes the boundary is an important cultural line. Most of the lea ding
southern cities are built at the falls of rivers, and their industries are
determined by the water power which the rivers afford. The rivers
are commonly navigable below and unnavigable above the tails, and the
original means of traffic were thus diverse, and the diversity persists
in some measure to-day, while the soil on the opposite sides of the
boundary is essentially distinct, so that the industries growing out of
the soil and its products are commonly contrasted. Among the south¬
ern cities located through the influence of this physiographic boundary
are Raleigh, Camden, Columbia, Augusta, Macon, Columbus, Wetumpka
and Montgomery, Tuscaloosa, Little Rock, Arkadelpliia, Austin, and
San Antonio. Originally in the southern Atlantic and eastern Gul
slopes the coastal plain was the land of cotton and the Piedmont
plateau the land of tobacco, but as man has modified his environment,
including even the nature of the soil, to his needs and his likes, the old
differentiation has partially disappeared; yet to-day, as during the
early days when the pioneer wrested the acres from nature’s sway, the
natural conditions are fairly reflected in the social conditions.

In the middle latitudes the five natural provinces are represented by
as many distinct episodes in the settlement and industrial development
of the country; and when the history of the conquest of America by
civilized man is fully written, they will be found represented also by as
many cultural stages and social aggregations. The shallow and pacific
waters of the submerged coastal plain invited maritime adventurers
to land and explore, and favored the development of those shoals of
food fishes that first stimulated and afterwards sustained navigation of
the Atlantic; the broad estuaries were the most attractive of the ave¬
nues leading to the interior, and their waters yielded the oyster and
the shad and a score of other edible aquatic forms, while the smooth
lowland invited agriculture; and the white adventurer displaced the
aboriginal fishermen from river and lowland, and agriculture, water
traffic, and fisheries flourished while yet the red lands beyond the fall
line were barely trodden wilderness. But the peaceful pursuits of the
lowland palled on the adventurer, and he pushed westward, attracted
by the game of the woodland, the desire for conquest over nature and
more primitive man, and the hope of gain for himself and his descend¬
ants. Some of these pioneers, impressed by the agricultural capabilities
of the Piedmont red lands, tarried long among the lower hills, and the
less intrepid were sifted out of the current by the Blue Ridge; and both

MGEE.]

THE LAND OF THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

359

classes remained to initiate that sedentary agricultural stage which
long characterized the red-laud region. The limited number of ad¬
venturers who crossed the Blue Ridge in the first tide of white invasion
were hunters and trappers, who occupied the mountain land until dis¬
placed from the fertile valleys by a later generation of planters; and
even to-day their descendants haunt the rocky slopes and summits, the
shadowy gulfs, and tortuous ravines of the Appalachian Mountains. A
handful of the hardiest of this class found their way through natural
obstacles and through aboriginal hordes into the fairer land beyond the
mountains, which they with their descendants and successors of kindred
spirit gradually possessed, first as nomads and squatters, then as set¬
tlers with fixed places of abode, and finally as agriculturists, artisans,
and traders. Meantime manufactories were built up along the fall line ;
iron mines were opened in the mountains and in the plateau; the low¬
land folk came to be noted for their activity and enterprise in manu¬
facturing and merchandising, in fisheries and in water traffic ; the
planters of the Piedmont red lands made place and representation for
themselves in legislative halls, in institutions of learning, in social life,
and gave emphasis to a distinctive phase of American character; the
hardy mountaineers for a time contributed brawn, brain, and bone to
neighboring classes, but their descendants frittered their energies in
primitive ways of life, and too many became Ishmaelites whose infiuence
on civilization has ever been nil or bad; while the boldest and most
untiring of the pioneers reached the transmontane land in which more
prodigal nature freely rewarded effort, and their descendants have long
since repaid with ample interest the blood first borrowed from the east.
To-day human invention has annihilated space and multiplied time to
such an extent that the classes mingle freely and industries merge, and
the old distinctions fail; yet, here as in other lands, the interaction
between the conditions of nature and the state of man is strikingly
exemplified.

The area of the Mississippi Valley east of the great river and south
of Lakes Michigan and Erie is some 200,000 square miles, and the mean
altitude is 700 or 800 feet; the area of the Cumberland plateau between
the Toinbigbee and the Mohawk is fully 100,000 square miles, and the
mean altitude is probably 1,700 or 1,800 feet; the area of the Appala¬
chian zone measured between central Alabama and the northernmost
corrugations in southern New York, and between the westernmost ridges
of Kentucky and Tennessee and the Blue Ridge, is nearly 100,000 square
miles, and the mean altitude may be put at 2,500 feet, the greatest
mountains reaching 7,000 feet; the area of the more clearly defined Pied¬
mont plateau, measured from the Tallapoosa to the Hudson, is over
100,000 square miles, and the mean altitude perhaps 1,200 feet; while
the area of the coastal plain between Sandy Hook and the Mississippi
River, including Florida, is not less than 250,000 square miles, and the
aggregate area of the subaerial development, measured from Cape Cod

360

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

to the Rio Grande, approaches 400,000 square miles, the mean altitude
being' less than 300 feet. This is two-fifths of the cis-Mississippi coun¬
try, or more than one-eighth of the national domain.

Over 90 per cent or more of this vast territory the Lafayette forma¬
tion once spread in a continuous mantle; over 60 or 70 per cent of the
territory it stretches to-day in an erosion-tattered sheet, often buried
beneath the Columbia deposits ; and over 25 or 30 per cent of the terri¬
tory, or more than 100,000 square miles, the wide- stretching formation
forms the present surface.

This is the land of the Lafayette formation.

THE CONFIGURATION OF THE COASTAL PLAIN.

While the coastal plain of the systemist extends from the fall line to
the submerged escarpment 100 miles offshore, the coastal lowland is but
half so wide, reaching from the fall line and from the crystalline and
Paleozoic terranes to the coast and coastal islands ; and, moreover, for
present purposes the New England extension of the lowland — Long
Island, Block Island, Marthas Vineyard, Nantucket, and Cape Cod —
may be neglected. Perhaps the southern portion of the Florida penin¬
sula too should be excluded ; for while the whole of this peninsula is
now North American mainland, and while it is probable that this ex¬
tension of our continent has participated in the continental movements
of later geologic time, it is but a few score miles beyond its shores to
lines and congeries of islands which are apparently nearly submerged
ranges and peaks of an ancient land whose history is unlike that of the
mainland. Limited thus, the coastal lowland runs from the mouth of the
Hudson to the Rio Grande, including half of New Jersey, nearly all of
Delaware, two-thirds of Maryland, two-fifths of Virginia, about half of
North Carolina, one-half each of South Carolina and Georgia and the
northern half of Florida, three-fifths of Alabama, nearly all of Missis¬
sippi, one-sixth of Tennessee and one-twelfth of Kentucky, small por¬
tions of Illinois and Missouri, one-third of Arkansas, all of Louisiana,
and fully one-fourth of Texas, or an aggregate of nearly 350,000 square
miles. This area falls into six natural districts.

Peninsular New Jersey is a broad, low ridge trending nearly parallel
with the fall line, 200 to 300 feet high in its culminating summits, slop¬
ing down gently nearly or quite to tide level on the northwest and still
more gently toward and beneath the sea on the southeast. The penin¬
sula comprising Delaware and the u Eastern Shore” of Maryland lies so
low and slopes so gently toward fall line and sea that the liomologue
and continuation of the New Jersey axis is barely perceptible; yet it
appears faintly in the higher eminences a dozen or a score of miles
beyond the fall line skirting the northernmost stretch of Chesapeake,
Bay. The peninsula lying between the Potomac and Chesapeake estu¬
aries, forming the u Western Shore” of Maryland, rises somewhat higher

MCGEE.]

THE BAYS OCCUPY A PHYSIOGRAPHIC TROUGH.

361

and displays still less notably tlie ridging parallel with fall line ; yet the
ridging is perceptible between the Patapsco and the Anacostia, and be¬
comes conspicuous on the eastern shore of the Potomac between the
Anacostia and the mouth of Acquia Creek.

Perhaps the most impressive and certainly the most significant fea¬
tures in the district of the coastal lowland lying between the Potomac
and the Hudson are the ridge rising gently from the plain in the south
and culminating in New Jersey and the trough dividing the ridge from
the fall line. On maps the trough is more conspicuous than the ridge,
for much of its length is occupied by the estuaries of the Potomac, the
Susquehanna, and the Delaware. The lesser streams, too, have estu¬
aries, so that this portion of the coastal lowland is nearly insulated ; the
isthmuses between the Raritan and Assanpink Creek, between Clay-
bank Creek and Northeast River, between the Patapsco and the Ana¬
costia; and between Potomac Creek and the Rappahannock are low, and
but 15, 10, 20, and 5 miles in width respectively, so that, measured
directly along the fall line, the Hudson is barred from the Rappahan¬
nock, 250 miles away, by only 50 miles of land and unnavigable water.
The significance in dynamic geology of this trough, of the hills and cas¬
cades bounding it on the northwest, and of the less prominent ridge
bounding it on the southeast, has already been discussed,1 but the pecul¬
iar configuration deserves emphasis, because it distinguishes this part
of the lowland plain from the remaining and much more extensive por¬
tion.

From Sandy Hook to Cape Charles the shores are low and flat, and
are flanked in general by wave-built bars, sometimes attaining the dig¬
nity of keys, separated from the mainland by inlets and straits; the
lower courses of the smaller waterways are broad stretches of marshland,
through which the waters wander aimlessly perhaps for miles before
breaking through the bordering banks of sand in narrow gateways,
while the larger streams and rivers embouch either through marshlands
or shoal estuaries more or less nearly cut oft' from the open ocean by the
prevailing sand banks of the coast. Indeed, the characteristic feature
of the coast is the wave-built bank of sand dividing ocean water from
fertile land; it stretches out northward a score of miles in Sandy Hook;
it stretches southward two score of miles in Cape May, and in its sub¬
merged extension half cuts off Delaware Bay; on one or both sides
of each of the lesser bays it reaches out for miles, straightening a coast
line otherwise deeply indented; Cape Henlopen and Cape Charles,
with the long sea islands between, are simple expressions of this vast
natural breakwater hundreds of miles in length yet only a few hundred
yards in width. The building of this barrier and the drowning of the
shores of the waterways, together with submerged forests and the
observed recession of the shores, tell alike of the encroachment of the
sea upon the land not only horizontally but vertically; for as the land

1 Seventh Annual Report U. S. Geological Survey, 1888, pp. 616-C33.

3G2

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

goes down the rivers’ mouths are drowned, and the coastal sands are
thrown higher and higher by the advancing breakers.

On the estuarine coasts of the New Jersey and Delaware-Maryland
peninsulas the lesser waterways embouch in like manner through reedy
marshes or in shoal inlets, and pygmy banks and bars are built up by
the feeble waves of the landlocked bays — Delaware and Chesapeake.
So all about the peninsular shores the configuration is like in kind,
though varying in degree of development; the river mouths are drowned,
marshes prevail, shoal bays are common, and a wave-built barrier of sand
marks the coast, save where low cliffs rise directly from the tidal
waters.

Within the shoreward zone in the northern district of the coastal low¬
land there is a characteristic configuration growing out of a past relation
between land and sea which has more than local significance. In gen¬
eral the land is a gently undulating plain of low and broad divides
faintly sculptured by the waters collected upon them, a plain nearly as
smooth as when the erstwhile sea bottom rose and became dry land.
This undulating plain forms three-fourths or nine-tenths of the sur¬
face, and it is trenched to a limited depth by waterways, shallow yet
so broad that their combined area forms the remaining one-tenth or one-
fourth of the surface. Each waterway occupies but a narrow channel,
and the channel meanders through the broad level plain marking the
flood height of the waters, 10, _!(), perhaps 50, feet lower than the mean
altitude of the principal plain. So the entire zone is low and faintly
sculptured ; it is divided into uplands and lowlands, the uplands com¬
posed of the sands of the former sea and the lowlands of the alluvium
gathered and dropped by the streams in channels which they excavated
when the land stood higher than now; the uplands run down to the sea
or bay, where they rise into the modern wave-built barrier, while the
lowlands merge with the tidal marshes or with the bottoms of the shoal
estuaries; and farther inland the uplands increased in rugosity and the
lowlands contract to channels or constricted valleys. These faintly
defined uplands and lowlands of New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland
correspond to the “high grounds” and “low grounds” of the Carolina
coast.

Tlie interiors of the three peninsulas are plains diversified in different
ways. Sometimes the surface undulates gently but irregularly, with
the depressions deepened by waterways when the whole surface is
drained of superfluous waters ; elsewhere there are broad terrace plains,
built of loam, perhaps sandy and gravelly, sometimes so smooth as to
be ill drained, but perhaps sharply incised by narrow ravines; again,
the undulating plains and the terrace plains, which are veritable planes ,
merge in various combinations. One of the combinations results some¬
times in an eminence or a larger remnant of the undulating plain, com¬
pletely encompassed by a terrace-plane in such manner as to form a
rounded islet rising sharply, not from sea waters, but from a formerly

MCGEE.]

THE NATURAL BREAKWATER OF CAPE HATTERAS.

363

sea- washed surface. Such are some of the culminating crests of this
low-lying physiographic province in New Jersey, in Delaware, and on
the eastern shore of Maryland within sight of the Chesapeake Bay,
Maulden’s Mountain and Bull’s Mountain being the most conspicuous
examples.

In brief, the northern extension of the coastal lowland is a broad, low
ridge, faintly defined in the south, well defined in the north, transected
by the Delaware and Chesapeake Bays, sloping gently toward the fall
line and still more gently toward the coast; the local relief is feebly
molded, and represents combinations of undulating plains and terrace
plains in the interior, and combinations of undulating plains with some
terrace plains, but more alluvial lowlands, toward the periphery; the
waterways are narrow erosion lines in the interior and broad alluvium
lined estuaries or marshes toward the coast; and the shore line is marked
by a wave-built sand bank, high and broad along the open ocean, low
and narrow about the landlocked bays.

The first natural district of the coastal lowland lies between the
Hudson and the Potomac; the second lies between the Potomac and
Neuse. These rivers, with the fall line on the west and the Atlantic
coast line on the east, bound a plain, not ridged as that in the north
but inclining seaward throughout — a generally smooth and monotonous
plain, characterized by long inlets through which the tidal waters reach
far into the interior.

The seashore of this stretch of lowland is much like that lying north
of Capes Charles and Henry ; the rivers expand toward their mouths,
sometimes in reedy marshes, but generally in broad, though shallow,
estuaries; these marshes and shallow estuaries are all but barred from
the open ocean by a wave-built breakwater stretching with scarce in¬
terrupted continuity from Cape Lookout nearly to Cape Henry; but the
breakwater is higher and broader and is separated from the land by
broader sounds than in the north, because along this bulging coast, of
which storm-swept Hatteras is the culminating point, the winds have a
longer sweep and the waves a stronger impetus than along the concave
curves of the northern shore.

Within the natural breakwater there is, as in the north, a zone made
up of uplands and lowlands, the former so little higher than the latter
that they would be distinguished with difficulty were not the lowlands
here almost at tide level. So the lowlands may be bay bottoms, more
miles in extent than feet beneath tide- water level ; or tidal marshes, half
time land and half time sea; or broad savannas which the highest tides
just fail to reach, while the uplands rise in crenulate scarps a yard or
five yards high, though the interiors may be smooth as the tide-fash¬
ioned stretches at present sea level.

Still farther from the coast there is, again as in the north, a zone of
undulating surface with the depressions emphasized by waterways ; but

364

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

the zone is vaguely defined, and the undulation is less conspicuous than
in New Jersey and the lower Maryland peninsula. Into this zone the
flat-surfaced uplands of the coastal zone extend along the waterways,
while the older terraces of the interior project into it on the divides;
and it is commonly hut a little way from the plain-flanked arms of the
sea to the interior zone of prevalent terracing.

Toward the fall line, particularly near the Potomac, and over much
of the lower land all the way from the Potomac to the Neuse, the sur¬
face is characterized by broad terrace plains, crenulate as to margins,
smooth and monotonous as to interiors, and invaded by the labyrinthine
ravines of minor waterways, sometimes far but again so incompletely
as to give but imperfect drainage. These plains are more extensive
than in the north; sometimes they circumscribe isolated buttes of older
materials than their own components, but commonly their continuity
is interrupted only by scarps of higher members of the series until they
gradually disappear toward the fall line; together they form a series of
broad, low steps rising from the present tide level to the Piedmont
margin.

The fall line, no longer accentuated by the coincident trough produced
by modern displacement, is inconspicuous in this district; the waters
of rivers and smaller streams indeed cascade through rocky gorges from
a generally higher province to a generally lower one; but between the
rivers the transition from province to province is seldom marked by
bluffs, never by cliffs, and generally by slopes so gentle that the com¬
mon boundary is a zone rather than a line.

The third natural district of the coastal plain stretches from the
Neuse River in North Carolina to about the Suwanee River in southern
Georgia and Florida; peninsular Florida, beyond a vaguely drawn
boundary crossing the isthmus from the neighborhood of St. Augustine
to Waccasassie Bay, being excluded. This is a land of easy slopes, in¬
clining gently from the fall line to the coast and followed by a simple
series of drainage systems, the rivers becoming sluggish yet remaining
distinctly fluvial rather than estuarine nearly or quite to their embou¬
chures into salt water. Its characteristic feature is the pine-clad sand
plain making up the greater part of the area; and scarcely less char¬
acteristic is the bifurcate or dendritic drainage of autogenetic type into
which the unnumbered waterways fall.

The seaward margin of the lowland is marked by a wave-built break¬
water in the north, where the storms break against the southern flank of
the Cape Hatteras bulge of the continent; farther southward the break¬
water shrinks and nearly fails, to be replaced between Cape Romaine
and the Florida line by the cordon of sea islands, once famous for cotton,
now richest of rice fields; still farther southward the natural break¬
water reappears in the line of long low islands locally known as “keys.”
The coastal sand bank in the north is breached by river mouths and
peninsulated by narrow sounds, yet it protects the contiguous marsh

m'gee.] THE “HIGH GROUNDS” AND “LOW GROUNDS.” 365

lands from the storm waves of the ocean; the sea islands are insulated
by a labyrinth of sounds and straits and channels of brackish water,
into which the rivers embouch and which at low tide embouch into the
Atlantic; while on the northern coast of eastern Florida the elongated
keys are nearly or quite insulated by narrow sounds of wonderful length,
tenuity, and parallelism — the troughs separating the wave-built sand
barriers of half a dozen episodes in continental rise and fall.

Within the coastal barrier, as farther northward, the lands all lie low,
yet are divisible into low and lower lands — the “high grounds” and
“low grounds,” respectively, of the vernacular. The “high grounds”
are remnants of a once continuous and uniform plain, now dissected by
a plexus of flat-bottomed channels rudely arranged in systems of den¬
dritic type, each opening through a single main stem into the sea, but
all merging and anastomosing in endlessly complex patterns ; and com¬
monly each channel has been expanded into a plain, rods or furlongs or
even miles in width, through which a slender stream meanders. The
sea islands, with their labyrinths of anastomosing sounds and straits
and channels, constitute “high grounds,” with the intervening “low
grounds” submerged ; and the intercoastal zone duplicates this condition,
save that the “low grounds” are a few feet or yards above tide level.
The condition of this zone records continental history in characters
easily read through the aid of geomorphology; it tells that the lands,
once sea bottom, rose until the waters drained away, carving dendritic
channels and channel systems as they ran; that the new-born land rose
so far and stood so long above its present level that the broad valleys
were carved out; and that it subsequently sank so fir that erstwhile
active streams grew sluggish and lined their valleys with broad sheets
of alluvium constituting the “low grounds.”

Inland of the intercoastal zone lies the broad belt of pine-clad sands
by which the district is characterized. This vast plain undulates
slightly and its depressions are slightly accentuated by waterways; yet
in general the undulation is but an expression of the old terrace scarps
long since broken down because of the friable material, and of the wide-
branching drainage ways, once sharp-cut ravines as in the terrace plains
of the north, but now rounded as to bottoms and soft contoured as to
sides.

Toward the Piedmont boundary the land stands higher, the streams
are more active, and the valleys are deeper, while between the streams
the surface undulates more decidedly, often rising into rounded hills.
Sometimes the hills are isolated, sometimes they are flanked by ter¬
races, and sometimes the terraces run a little way upon the Piedmont
plateau; but in general the records of oceanic invasion are here but
faintly inscribed on the face of the land. The common boundary of the
plateau and lowland is ill defined save by the cascades of the water
ways and by the change in soil character, yet the Piedmont hills are
always the higher, the coastal plains always the lower.

3GG

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

There is a fourth natural district in the lowland plain, which is so
diverse in its various parts that it might well he divided, yet so desti¬
tute of definite boundaries that it must be treated as a unit. It joins
the third district along the semi- arbitrary line drawn at the Suwanee
River, runs thence down to the Gulf, stretches westward and northwest¬
ward to the bluff rampart skirting the Mississippi flood-plain in Missis¬
sippi, Tennessee, and Kentucky, and is vaguely delimited from the
Appalachian and Cumberland provinces in northwestern Alabama and
in western Kentucky and Tennessee, as well as from the Piedmont
plateau in eastern Alabama and northern Georgia.

In the Kew Jersey and Delaware-Maryland peninsulas the lesser
streams run down the slopes, and thus by their direction indicate the
configuration of the land; in the Potomae-Neuse district the stream
courses measurably reflect the land configuration ; in the district be¬
tween the Keuse and the Suwanee all streams, great and small, run
down the prevailing slopes and cross directly the successive geologic
terranes, and thus at the same time express the general configuration
of the land and indicate the course of evolution of the continent; but be¬
tween the Suwanee and the Mississippi these simple relations fail.
Throughout most of Alabama, it is true, the lowland inclines gently
and with approximate uniformity from the Appalachian and Cumberland
borders to the Gulf, and the rivers flowing down the slopes represent
the general radial system of southeastern United States; but in western
Alabama a differentiation of the surface appears, and this differenti¬
ation increases westward and northward to the margin of the district.
In Mississippi the general seaward slope of the coastal plain is broken
up by two great ridges. The first of these culminates in the extreme
southwestern corner of the State and extends southeastward, contract¬
ing in width and diminishing in height, to fade out near the mouth of
the Alabama River. This is the Grand Gulf hill land. The second
ridge rises in the river bluffs overlooking the Mississippi and its
broad flood-plain in extreme western Kentucky; nearly hugs the great
river thence two- thirds of the way across Tennessee; then curves slightly
eastward, crossing the Tennessee-Mississippi boundary 50 miles east
of the river, and, curving still more strongly as it continues, thence
forms the main Alabama-Mississippi watershed to within 50 miles
above the head of Mobile Bay. This is the Lignitic hill land. South
of the Grand Gulf hill land the surface slopes rapidly Gulfward to the
alluvial plain of the delta and the coast; the culminating summits of
the ridge rise 500 or 600 feet above sea level ; between the two ridges
there is a triangular depression averaging 200 feet lower than either
upland; the Lignitic ridge reaches altitudes of 600 or 700 feet above
sea level; toward the interior there is a trough often 100 and sometimes
200 feet lower than its mean height ; then the surface inclines upward to
the vaguely defined margin of the Cumberland plateau. Kow, Pearl
River and some lesser streams cut through the Grand Gulf hill land ;

MCGEE.]

DRAINAGE EXPRESSES CONTINENTAL GROWTH.

367

the Tallahatchee and other rivers of Northern Mississippi send a score
of arms through the Lignitic ridge to rob the basins of the Tombigbee
and the Tennessee beyond, and all the larger rivers of western Ten¬
nessee have cut their channels through its crest. Thus in this part of
the district the main drainage and the configuration are discrepant,
but even here the minor drainage commonly expresses configuration.
Again, in southeastern Alabama and southern Georgia there is a
vaguely defined ridge, coinciding with the Neocene terrane, bounded
inland by a vaguely defined trough, coinciding with the Eocene ter¬
rane, and both trough and ridge are transected alike by the Chatta¬
hoochee and other rivers ; but here, as in Mississippi, the minor drainage
commonly conforms to the configuration. In both of these cases the
configuration expresses structure; elsewhere it expresses general con¬
tinental growth.

The Gulfward margin of this district is in general terms homologous
with the seaward margin of the more northerly districts, but there are
certain striking and significant differences in detail. Between Appalach-
icola Bay and Mobile Bay the coast, like that of eastern Florida, is
commonly skirted by keys separated from the mainland by narrow
sounds; but the keys are narrower and lower than those built by the
trade-driven waves of the Atlantic, and the sounds are commonly
broader, shallower, and less regular in outline, passing here and there
into reedy or grass-grown marshes. West of Cape San Bias, where
the gulf waves come in with longer sweep and stronger impetus, the
barrier keys increase in size and both keys and sounds in regularity of
outline, and at high tide a boat might be driven through sounds, land¬
locked bays, and meandering channels nearly or quite all the way
from Appalachicola to Mobile. West of Mobile Bay the keys continue
in scarcely diminished height, though in broken continuity ; but instead
of skirting the shore they lie 10, 15, even 20 miles in the offing,
separated from the mainland by the broad Mississippi Sound. In
structure, in position, in elongated form, in mode of origin, in geologic
significance Dauphin Island, Petit Bois, Horn Island, Ship Island, Cat
Island, and their neighbors are at the same time the homologues and
the direct continuation of the keys fringing the western Florida coast;
but here the land is sinking, and the feeble waves of the Gulf are
unable to drive the narrow breakwater inland so rapidly as the still
waters steal into the breaches made by the rivers. So the Gulf waters
enter the mouths of the affluents in tidal arms like those of the north¬
ern Atlantic coast, transforming the embouchures of the larger streams
into bays and those of the smaller streams into salt marshes. These
bays or marshes are partly bound on the Gulf side by low sand
banks built by the feeble waves of Mississippi Sound, while between
the bays the friable sands and loams stand in vertical cliffs 5, 10, or 15
feet high; for here, as elsewhere, the encroaching waves bear into deeper
waters the cliff talus as rapidly as it is formed. Thus, west of Mobile

368

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Bay, the natural breakwater characteristic of nearly the whole vast
stretch of the Atlantic and Gulf coast is divided: the older and
stronger part lies out at sea a score of miles ; the newer and feebler
representative skirts the present shore line, half inclosing the bays and
marshes, but failing along the headlands.

Next within the gulfward margin of the district there lies the usual
lowland zone ; but it is even lower than in the north, so that it falls
into savannas and swamps rather than into “high grounds” and “low
grounds,” as in the Carolinas. The savannas, like the “high grounds,”
are broad tracts bounded by low scarps sloping steeply down to swamps
or to sharp-cut but shallow ravines, and overlooking the larger bays
and sounds commonly in low sea cliffs. About their margins they sup¬
port shrubbery and forests of pine or magnolia, but their interiors are
often broad and imperfectly drained tracts of flat grass land, with scat¬
tered yuccai and here and there an isolated pine — the “ pine meadows” of
the pioneer southern geologist, Hilgard. The swamps, the homologues
of the Carolinian “low grounds,” are given over to reeds and sedge and
coarse marsh grass toward the coast, with live oak groves along the coast
ridges, and to canes and tangled shrubbery toward the interior.

Still farther inland, just within the subcoastal lowland zone, there is
commonlyfound in southern Mississippi and Alabama and in the “pan
handle” of Florida, a tract of curious hybrid topography congenetic with
the configuration sometimes displayed near the Piedmont margin in
other districts of the coastal lowlands. Just as the swamps of the sub¬
coastal zone invade with octopus arms the higher savannas, so the
savannas in turn invade the higher lands in scores of flat-bottom
valleys and hundreds of narrow ravines; but this higher land, unlike
the savannas, is a land of hills, knobs, crests, salients, wandering
divides, and strong slopes. This relation between the savanna plane
and the undulating plain is exemplified midway between Mobile and
Pascagoula Bay. There occasional insulated hills — now rounded knobs,
again elongated ridges, elsewhere smooth but distinctly serrate crests, or
perhaps pygmy peaks running down into three or five miniature buttress
spurs — rise above the flat savanna plane, while farther inland the hills
blend in broader tracts of labyrinthine sculpture. The relation is ex¬
emplified again between the Apalachicola and Suwanee rivers at Talla¬
hassee. Here there is a congeries of knobs, crests, divides, spurs, peaks,
buttresses, all smoothly rounded yet distinctive in form, and all ex¬
pressing the characteristic sculpture produced in a homogeneous terrane
by active stream work, stimulated by a low base-level; while these posi¬
tive relief features are divided by flat-bottomed valleys, bifurcating and
breaking up into innumerable dendritic branches running up into
ravines after the fashion of autogenetic streams. Streams, indeed,
occupy these valleys, but except at their very sources wander through
broad plains of sandy alluvium. The summits of the hills fall into a
vaguely defined plain 200 feet above tide ; the valley bottoms fall into

MrGEE. ]

THE MISSISSIPPI BLUFF RAMPART.

369

a sharply defined plane 100 feet above tide. Here, as elsewhere in this
zone of hybrid topography, it is evident to layman and expert alike that
a rugose land, sculptured by active streams, was invaded by still waters
rising to the present savanna level; that the waters remained until
valleys, gorges, and ravines were clogged with the debris washed from
the hills; and that the land finally rose just so far as to drain but not to
deeply erode the savannas.

The western border of this district is the line of bluffs overlooking
the Mississippi flood plain from the mouth of the Ohio to Baton Iiouge.
This bluff line is of compound character and complex genesis, but the
diverse structural characters and the complicated genetic conditions
may be discriminated.

In the first place the bluff line is a simple scarp of the coastal low¬
land, here so elevated as to become a low plateau, half eaten by lateral
corrasion of the great river. So it is a series of truncated spurs and sali¬
ents separated by ravines and broader valleys, each spur and each sali¬
ent being the extremity of a divide — the low plateau was a rugose pene¬
plain1 of autogenetic sculpture, but was invaded by the great river and
its western portion carried away in such manner that the boundary of
the remaining portion gives a profile section of the peneplain. So the
contour of each bluff exemplifies contours of the plateau; the form and
depth of each ravine and valley at the scarp exemplify the elements of
the ravines and valleys in the interior; and the depth and amount of
erosion exemplifies the erosion to which the body of the plateau lias
been subjected. So, too, the height of the bluffs at each point in the
scarp illustrates the general altitude of the plateau, and accordingly the
Lignitic and Grand Gulf hill-land find expression in the scarp. The
Lignitic ridge coincides with the bluff line in the northwestern part of
the district, nearly from the mouth of the Ohio to just below the city
of Baton Rouge. It begins with the Columbus Bluff, over 200 feet in
height, and includes McLeod Bluff and the Hickman Bluffs in Ken¬
tucky, as well as the Fort Pillow (or Fultou), Randolph, Old River, and
Memphis Bluffs in western Tennessee, the whole constituting the series
of conspicuous headlands known among the early rivermen as the
“Chickasaw Bluffs.” Farther southward the scar]) cuts the broad
trough lying between the culminating ridges, and diminishes in height
and prominence. At Memphis the bluffs are rounded and barely 100
feet in height; west of Hernando and Senatobia they are even lower;
still farther southward they increase gradually in height, reaching 150
to 200 feet about Yazoo and over 200 feet at Vicksburg, just below the
mouth of Yazoo River ; the scarp is then reduced by reason of the modern
and ancient work of one of the most efficient of the coastal plain streams,
the Big Black River; it soon rises again to culminate in the Natchez Bluff,
Ellis Cliffs, and Loftus Heights — the “Choctaw Bluffs” of the Mississippi
boatmen — the last named eminence reaching, at Fort Adams, heights

1 A term applied by Davia to uudulatiug plains representing partial degradation to base level.

12 GKEOL - 24

370

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

of from 350 to 450 feet; and thence the scarp inclines rapidly south¬
ward to 250 feet at Bayou Sara, 150 feet at Port Hudson, and 75 feet
at Baton Rouge, above the river washing its base.

The simple aspect of the scarp as a profile section of a low plateau is
complicated by characters significant of later genetic conditions, and re¬
cording one of the most interesting episodes in the geologic development
of southern United States. During the latest continental depression
affecting this region the entire bluff line was sometimes partly and
sometimes wholly submerged, and became a line of active deposition of
river-borne sediments. So the breaks between the bluffs are partly
filled and the intervening crests are broadened and heightened by a
mantle of fine, silty loam. Sometimes this modification of the primary
configuration is inconspicuous, but again it is the most impressive feature
of the local topography. Thus, at the Columbus Bluff' in western Ken¬
tucky one may stand on the verge of the cliff and toss a pebble into
the river on the west, or look eastward over a plain inclining gently
downward for a mile and then passing into the smoothly undulating
surface stretching thence to the mouth of the Tennessee River; and all
the way from the Mississippi to the Tennessee there is no land so high
as the verge of the cliff upon which he stands. Again, from Hickman,
Kentucky, to the mouth of the Obion, in Tennessee, the river bluffs are
the western margin of a ridge averaging 50 feet higher than the interior
plain to the eastward. A part of this eastward inclination from the
river cliffs is due to coincidence of the line of the “Chickasaw Bluff's”
with the axis of the lignitic hill-land; but this is only a partial explana¬
tion of the phenomenon, as is shown by the facts that not only the
highest summits but the thickest accumulations of the Pleistocene loam
occur at the verges of cliff's rising from the water’s edge, and that the
elevated bluff line is transformed into a continuous rampart like the
natural levees of the Mississippi, 250 feet below. This rampart affords
favorite sites for roads. Much of the way from Hickman to the mouth
of the Obion, past the tract made interesting through the memorable
earthquake of 1811-13 by which rivers were diverted and Reelfoot Lake
was created, the roadway follows the crest of the rampart, because, albeit
ravined and crevassed by the terrible quaking, it is yet the smoothest
and most practicable route in the region. Moreover, in the lower por¬
tion of the bluff line, between the Lignitic and Grand Gulf ridges, a
similar character is maintained. On both sides of Cold water River the
roads frequently run upon the long narrow ridges forming the culmi¬
nating crests of the entire region, and the valleys are half cut off by
the barrier of Pleistocene deposits, so that this stream and its lesser
neighbors on the north and south emboucli through narrow breaches in
the nearly continuous rampart; at Charleston the two branches of the
Tillatoba unite in a broad amphitheater walled from the “delta coun¬
try” beyond by a similar barrier broken onlyin the narrowehasm through
which the waters escape; at Yazoo the highest bluffs are those imme-

MrQEE.]

THE PLATEAU OF EASTERN MISSISSIPPI.

371

diately overlooking the “delta;” and again at Grand Gulf tlie plain
inclines inland from a rarely broken rampart. Still farther southward
this feature of the bluffs gradually fails, to appear no more beyond Loftus
Heights.

There is thus a certain similarity between the riverward and Gulfward
margins of this lowland district. Along the Gulf shore the waves have
cut off a segment of the country and laid bare a profile section of the
portion rising above tide level, but have half concealed this profile by
throwing up a natural breakwater against it; the wandering Mississippi
in like manner cut off a segment of the land, laying bare a profile
section through it, but afterward half concealed this profile by a barrier
of its own sediments built when the waters rose higher. There is this
difference : the Gulf waters have invaded the valleys and concealed the
lower portions of the profile, while the Mississippi exposes the notches
as well as the crests of its more rugose profile.

Within the subcoastal line flanking the Gulf, and within the bluff
rampart overlooking the Mississippi flood plain, the configuration of
this district is qualitatively similar throughout, i. e., it is in the large
way a vast plain undulating gently in long, low sweeps, themselves
sculptured into endless labyrinths of rounded hills and winding valleys,
mainly of autogenetic type. The hills vary in height and steepness and
the valleys vary in depth and complexity from place to place; on the
Grand Gulf and Lignitic ridges the local relief reaches 200 feet, and
the way of the traveler is an endless succession of hills so steep as to
weary animals and retard progress; in the trough between these ridges
the local relief is sometimes so low as 50 feet, and the way of the traveler
might be easy and his progress rapid were not the routes (survivals of
primitive conditions in which first horsemen and afterwards vehicles
followed the trails beaten by cattle on their way to pasturage) commonly
circuitous and aimless beyond belief. In general the local relief reflects
in greater or less degree the characteristics of the local terrane. So the
sandy formations are commonly characterized by short steep slopes and
frequent ravines, the shales and other argillaceous formations by long
slopes and gentle swells with few ravines, and the calcareous formations
(particularly the “ rotten limestone” of the earlier nomenclature ; the
Toinbigbee chalk of modern geologists) by smooth ill-drained expanses
colloquially known as “black prairies;” yet the height of the hills and
depth of the valleys always indicate the proximity and size of neighbor¬
ing water ways of primary or secondary order.

The isolated and perhaps terrace-circumscribed knolls of the northern
districts find occasional parallel in this district. The insulated or pe-
ninsulated peaks and crests projecting above the savanna level in the
south, indeed, represent this class of eminences; the same class is rep¬
resented also by the low buttes locally known as mountains (Lumpkins
Mountain, Gordon Mountain, etc.) in northern Mississippi and western
Tennessee, save that the circumscribing terraces are indefinite and rep-

372

TILE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

resented rather by smoothly undulating plains of sedimentation than
by sharply defined horizons of wave cutting. These insulated knolls
are always significant, since they afford a measure of continental sub¬
mergence during a past eon; and in this district they are especially sig¬
nificant, since they indicate that the depth of Columbia submergence
increased gradually and with approximate uniformity from not more
than 30 feet above the present tide level in the vicinity of Mobile Bay
to 000 feet above the same datum in northern Mississippi.

In general the inland margin of the coastal plain in this district is even
less definite than in the neighboring district to the eastward. In west¬
ern Georgia and eastern Alabama the rivers, indeed, cascade over hard
rocks to form sluggish stretches in the lowland elastics; but commonly
each waterway marks an arm of clastic deposits extending miles into
the adjacent plateau in an ancient estuary, while between the rivers the
transition is seldom sharp. In central Alabama, where the coastal plain
overlaps the southern terminus of the Appalachians, the lowland sends
long fingers into the valleys between the successive ridges, while the
ridges project for miles into the general lowland area. Moreover, the
intermontane valleys in the southern Appalachians stand so near base
level that the local relief is faintly inscribed; e. g., in the valley floored
by Cambrian shales and bounded by Red Mountain on the southeast
and Flint Ridge on the northwest, the surface is so low and smooth as
to be ill drained and so similar to a, distinctive part of the coastal plain as
to be correlated therewith in popular conception and terminology — it is
the u northern flatwoods,” the apparent homologne of the u southern
flatwoods” lying midway between the Piedmont plateau and the Gulf.
In northwestern Alabama the demarcation between the Cumberland
plateau and the coastal plain is so ill defined that it may not, at least
for the present, be drawn except as a zone a dozen or a score of miles
in width. Still farther northward, in the extreme northeastern corner
of Mississippi and in western Tennessee and Kentucky, the boundary
coincides fairly with the Tennessee River, although the older rocks out¬
crop occasionally west of the stream, and the coastal plain deposits and
configuration sometimes appear on the uplands some miles farther east¬
ward.

The local relief of this district, and indeed of the coastal plain in gen¬
eral, varies from place to place with the local conditions residing in the
character of the terrane, and with the proximity of the primary and
secondary drainage ways, the present relation to base-level, the relation
to base-level during past eons, etc.; but there is also a class of mint v
topographic features which are of temporary character, and result from
temporary conditions residing chiefly in the relation between configura¬
tion and vegetation. These temporary relief features are of special
interest in that they illustrate the mode of operation of certain geologic
processes which commonly proceed with imperceptible slowness, but
which are here proceeding with such rapidity that their effect can be

m-oee.] the “ OLD FIELDS” OF MISSISSIPPI. 373

measured not only from decade to decade, but from year to year, from
season to season, even from storm to storm. The subject is one of the
greater and more vital interest in that the temporary activity in this
process was initiated, albeit unconsciously, through human agency, and
in that it will inevitably affect materially human welfare in the district
throughout the future.

It has been shown incidentally that the most conspicuous character¬
istics of the topography of this district represent three relatively recent
episodes in continental history: First, the land stood high and the
streams were thereby stimulated and cut deep their channels, develop¬
ing a rugose configuration; then the land sank until half of this district
was submerged, the energies of the streams were paralyzed, the valleys
were filled with sediments up to tide level and clogged with alluvium
above, and half of the hills were blanketed with a distinctive deposit;
still later the land gradually resumed its present altitude and attitude,
the rivers regained a part of their suspended activity, and the clogged
channels were partly reexcavated. But the modern resumption by the
land of its old altitude and attitude took place slowly. As the expanded
Gulf gradually shrank to its present limits, forests followed the retreat¬
ing waters, and clothed alike the soft-contoured hills and the smooth
surfaces of the alluvium-lined valleys. This forest mantle persisted un¬
til the settlement by white men of at least a typical part of the district.
First came a nomadic generation of men whose tools were the rifle and
the hunting knife, and whose food was, like that of their Indian prede¬
cessors, the game of the forest; the men of the second generation were
squatters, who cleared gardens, located petty plantations, and subsisted
on the combined products of the soil and of the chase; during the third
generation the slaveholding planter took possession of the land, cleared
the forests, enlarged the fields, and not only subsisted upon but ex¬
ported the products of the soil. So, over the uplands the face of nature
was changed; the forests were transformed into fields; civilized man
replaced the animals, and the hills smiled with bounteous harvests of
corn, cotton, cane, and tobacco. Then came the moral revolution of a
quarter of a century ago, and with it an industrial involution. The
planter was impoverished, his sons were slain, his slaves were liberated,
and he was fain either to desert the plantation or to greatly restrict his
operations. So the cultivated acres were abandoned by the thousand.

Then the hills, no longer protected by the forest foliage, no longer
bound by the forest roots, were attacked by the rain-born rivulets and
gullied and channeled in all directions; each streamlet reached a hun¬
dred arms into the hills, each arm grasped with its hundred fingers a
hundred shreds of soil; as each bit of soil was torn away the slope was
steepened, and the theft of the next storm was thereby facilitated.
Thus, storm by storm and year by year, the formerly fertile fields were
invaded by gullies, gorges, ravines, “gulfs,” ever increasing in width
and depth until whole liillsides were carved away, until the soil of a

374

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

thousand years’ growth melted into the streams, until the fair acres of
antebellum days were converted by the hundred into “bad lands,” deso¬
late and forbidding as those of the Dakotas. Over ten thousand square
miles the traveler is never out of sight of glaring sand wastes where
once were fields, each perhaps scores or even hundreds of acres in extent;
his way lies sometimes in, sometimes between, gullies and gorges — the
“gulfs” of the blacks, whose superstition they stimulate — sometimes
shadowed by subtropical foliage, but often exposed to the blaze of the
sun reflected from barren earth. Here the road winds through a gorge
so steep that the sunlight scarcely enters; there it traverses a narrow
crest of crumbling clay at the verge of a chasm fifty feet, perhaps a
hundred feet, in vertical depth, into which he might be plunged by a
single misstep.1 When the shower comes he may see the roadway ren¬
dered impassable, even obliterated, within a few minutes; he always
sees the falling waters accumulate as viscid torrents of brown or red
mud ; sees the myriad miniature pinnacles and defiles of the hillside be¬
fore him transformed by the beating of the raindrops and the rushing of
the rill so completely that when the sun shines again he would not recog¬
nize its features. Such is the modern erosion whose baleful marks lie
deep in much of the erstwhile fair land of the coastal plain.

There is a fifth district in the coastal lowland which, in configuration
as in the genesis expressed by configuration, stands by itself — the vast
flood plain or “delta” of the lower Mississippi. In length it reaches
from the mouth of the Ohio 1,100 miles measured along the river, or
half as far measured in an air line, to the Gulf; it is bounded on the
east by the bluff rampart separating it from the contiguous district; it
is bounded on the west by a less continuous and less conspicuous ram¬
part crossing the Arkansas River at Little Rock and gradually failing
southward until this district and its more westerly neighbor nearly blend.
The surface of this otherwise monotonous district is relieved by a few
small tracts of higher land. Most conspicuous of these is Crowley
Ridge in eastern Arkansas, a long belt of upland stretching from south-
eastern Missouri southward between the White and St. Francis rivers
to the Mississippi at Helena. This belt of upland rises 100 or 200 feet
above the insulating flood plain, and in its steepness of slope and
rugosity of outline fairly simulates the eastern rampart overlooking the
“delta” in corresponding latitudes.

The vast lowland tract comprised in and constituting most of this
district is at once the most extensive and most complete example of a
land surface lying at base-level or a trifle below that the continent affords.
It is trenched longitudinally by the great river; it is trenched trans¬
versely by the White, Arkansas, Red, and other large rivers; between
these greater water ways it is cut into a labyrinth of peninsulas and
islands by a network of lesser tributaries and distributaries, the former
gathering the waters from its own surface and from adjacent country,

Photographs of some of these “gulfs ” are reproduced iu Figs. 45, 46, 48, and 49.

M'GEE.]

THE ARKANSAS “BLACK PRAIRIES.”

375

and tlie latter aiding the main river to discharge its vast volume of
water and its immense load of detritus into the Gulf. The whole surface
lies so low’ that it is flooded by periodic overflows of the Mississippi and
its larger tributaries, and with each flood receives a fresh coating of river
sediment; and much of the flood plain, fertilized by the seasonal, annual,
or decennial freshet deposits, is clothed with luxuriant forests and dense
tangles of undergrowth, or with brakes of cane, or with subtropical
shrubbery, only a few of the broader interstream tracts being grassed.
Partly by reason of this mantle of vegetation, the current of each
overflow is checked as the river rises above its banks, and most of the
sediment is dropped near by; and so the Mississippi, the White, the
Arkansas, and the Eed, as well as each lesser tributary and each dis¬
tributary from the great Atchafalaya down, is flanked by natural levees
of height and breadth proportionate to the depth and breadth of the
stream. The network of waterways is thus a network of double ridges
with channels between ; and each interstream area is virtually a shallow,
dish-like pond in which the waters of the floods lie long, to be drained
finally, perhaps through fresh-made breaks in the natural dikes, weeks
after the stream flood subsides. In the southern part of the district the
interstream basins approach tide level and drain still more slowly ; in
the subcoastal zone many of the basins are permanent tidal marshes. In
the western part of the district there is an area in which the interstream
basins lie so high that they are invaded only by the highest floods and
veneered with only the finest sediments; in some cases these sediments
are so fine and so compactly aggregated and the surface is so ill drained
and watered that trees may hardly take root, and these are either drowned
by the floods or withered by the sun in the drought. Such portions of
the surface are devoid of the usual forest mantle and but scantily covered
with coarse grass; they are the “black prairies” of southern Arkansas
and northwestern Louisiana.

In the northern part of the district there is a considerable area which
was configured like the rest when the French and Spanish settlers
began to displace the aboriginal hunters, but which was so shaken,
depressed, and warped during the memorable New Madrid earthquake
that extensive land tracts were converted into lakes, and flowing rivers
were transformed into stagnant bayous, while some areas were lifted
above the reach of the waters and some stream courses were diverted.
This tract includes the so-called “sunk country” of Missouri and
Arkansas, as well as the Reelfoot Lake district of Kentucky and Ten¬
nessee. It includes also the uplifted land of Lake County, Tennessee,
the only part of the Mississippi plain beyond the reach of the highest
floods.

While the lower Mississippi district of the coastal plain is in a gen¬
eral way unique, its shoreward margin is comparable to that of ad¬
jacent districts. The lesser rivers and the distributaries — the “ bayous ”
of the vernacular — embouch into shoal estuaries or wander through

376

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

reedy marslios ultimately to pour into the Gulf through narrow breaches
in a natural breakwater built by the Gulf waves; but the breakwater
is even less conspicuous than that east of the delta. Between Lake
Borgne and Mobile Bay the Gulf is advancing upon the land so rap¬
idly that the coastal keys are left far behind and nearly submerged;
all about the delta the configuration suggests that, except at the very
points of embouchure of the great river and its distributaries, the Gulf
is encroaching upon the land with so much greater rapidity that the
keys are either devoured by the waves almost as rapidly as formed, or
else remain only as narrow mud banks, like the Chandeleur Islands, or
as completely submerged bars and shoals parallel with the coast.

The sixth district of the coastal plain extends from the Mississippi
flood region to the Rio Grande. Its eastern boundary is interrupted
by the broad flood-plain of Red River, but in a general way extends
southward as an inconspicuous line of low salients overlooking the
water ways and jutting into the flood plain from the Arkansas near Little
Rock across the northern boundary of Louisiana to Catahoula Parish
in the central part of the state, and thence, beyond the Red River
bottom lands, from Avoyelles Parish along the western banks of Atch-
afalaya Bayou directly to the Gulf; it is vaguely bounded inland by
points of inflection in the waterways sometimes attaining the dignity of
falls from Little Rock to Austin, and thence nearly to the Rio Grande
by a displacement, analogous to that of the middle Atlantic slope, over
which every river cascades; and although the Rio Grande marks its
national limit the same district continues in a lowland shelf fringing
the Gulfward bases of the eastern Sierra Madre in Mexico southward
to Tampico and thence in a still narrower shelf to beyond Vera Cruz.

Like the districts washed by the Atlantic and the eastern Gulf, this
natural division of the costal plain comprises three or more zones trend¬
ing parallel with the seaboard. The coastwise zone, as in the east, con¬
sists for the most part of long wave-built keys separated from the main¬
land by sounds, and the keys are longer and the sounds broader and
deeper than those of the eastern coast; for a single key (Padre Island)
is 100 miles long and light-draft vessels from the mouth of the Rio
Grande may ply behind it through the Laguna de la Madre, and thence
through the shorter sounds to Matagorda, 250 miles away. East of
Galveston the keys and sounds appear to fail ; yet the wave-built bar¬
riers are continuous as in southern Texas and eastern Mexico, though
submerged beneath the Gulf waters to form Sabine Bank, Trinity Shoal,
Ship Shoal, and their connecting series of bars parallel with the
coast. East of the Mississippi delta the Gulf is invading the land so
rapidly that the wave-built keys are left far behind; west of the delta
the invasion is so much more rapid that the coastal islands are drowned.
The Mississippi Sound of the east finds a homologue west of the delta,
but the outer barrier of the western sounds is overflowed by the Gulf
waters.

MrGEE.]

A GRAND EXAMPLE OF ISOSTACY.

377

There is an apparent diversity but real unity in the configuration of
the coastwise zone bordering the Gulf; and this configuration is es¬
pecially significant in its bearings on modern geologic doctrine. It is
the current opinion among American geologists that areas subjected to
degradation rise while areas of deposition sink. Now, the Gulf, consid¬
ered as a unit, is an area of deposition from a very much greater area
of degradation toward the east, north, and west; and the inference that
it must be sinking is sustained by the evidence found in the vast extent
of sounds separating the wave-built keys from the mainland; for the
clearing of sea-cliffs, the building of strong keys, and the development
of sounds are the characteristic works of a sea advancing on a low-lying
land. Moreover, the width of the sounds is in a general way propor¬
tionate to the rapidity of deposition, being much greater along the
Texas coast than along that of Florida and greatest of all about the
mouth of the chief river of the continent. This general relation is
indeed contravened about the mouths of the rivers, of which some em-
bouch into bays while others push deltas into the Gulf; but the contra¬
vention is apparent rather than real, and only corroborates the general
testimony. Thus the deltaform Appalacliicola projection is greater
than that of the larger Rio Grande and approaches that of the Missis¬
sippi ; but the Appalacliicola is the most active river of the southeastern
part of the coastal plain, and at the same time represents the part of
the basin in which general deposition is slowest. So, too, the Mobile,
Pearl, Sabine, and Trinity rivers, which approach the Appalacliicola
in volume, embouch into bays instead of pushing out deltas; but all
are within the influence of the Mississippi delta as proved by the lag¬
ging keys, now half drowned or completely submerged. Accordingly,
whether viewed as a body or examined in detail, the evidence of the
coastal configuration is consistent with itself and in harmony with the
current doctrine; and it is just to observe that while some of the phe¬
nomena may be obscure or equivocal to such an extent as to become
inconclusive when considered separately, no other region thus far
studied has yielded so large a body of thoroughly consistent and har¬
monious evidence in support of the doctrine of isostacy.

The subcoastal zoue extending inland from the shores of the sounds
about to the head of tide in the estuaries and narrower waterways is much
like that of the land lying east of the Mississippi — it is made up of sa¬
vannas insulated and pen insulated by swamps or shoal bays, the former
corresponding to the “ high grounds,” and the latter to the “ low grounds”
of the Carolinas, except that both lie lower. The “low grounds”
are half submerged and either abandoned to reeds and sedges and
croaking waterfowl or given over to fishing grounds, according to the
depth of the flooding; the savannas lie so low as to be ill drained, and
are commonly clothed only with coarse grass and dotted with scattered
pines andynccfe, like the “pine meadows” of southeastern Mississippi,
or perhaps with scrub palmetto, like the coastward swamps of Florida.

378

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Toward the vaguely defined inland margin of the zone both the “low
grounds” and the “high grounds” rise and the former contract to stream
channels, and along most waterways, broad, low, natural levees like those
of the Mississippi flood plain circumscribe the savannas; these levees
are commonly wooded, while the interstream tracts form prairie lands
analogous to the “ black prairies” of eastern Arkansas, and in the Cal¬
casieu prairies of western and southwestern Louisiana and elsewhere
agriculture has been adapted to this physiographic condition, and vast
savanna prairies, bounded by narrow belts of forest along the water
ways, yet so broad that their flat surfaces fade into the horizon, are con¬
verted into immense fields plowed, planted, and cultivated by imple¬
ments attached to traction engines or drawn by steam-driven cables.
Still farther inland the waterways contract and the natural levees fail,
and the subcoastal zone becomes a continuous band of flat, monotonous
prairie land — the “ coast prairies ” of the habitants — stretching from
the Sabine to beyond the Nueces and interrupted only by narrow trans¬
verse belts of woodland along the principal waterways. This grass land
is the geologic equivalent of the Carolina pine lands, but the soil differs
even more than the vegetal covering — the sands of the east are replaced
by muddy clays like those beneath the Mississippi flood-plain.

The gulfward boundary of the inland zone of this district passes
through Sabine, Columbus, Beeville, and San Diego, while the land¬
ward boundary coincides with the more or less sharply defined fall line.
Topographically this zone is throughout a land of autogenetic sculp¬
ture, moderately strong along the rivers which head in the higher in¬
terior, feeble and even faint along the waterways originating within
its borders, the altitude corresponding fairly with that of the district
east of the Mississippi, though the relief is less pronounced; but since
the zone stretches from the humid region near the Mississippi to the
subhumid or arid region toward the Rio Grande, its surface aspect is
diverse. Along Red River it is well wooded with oak and hickory on
the uplands, with poplar and liquidambar over the lowlands, and with
cypress and tupeloin the swamps. One to two hundred miles westward
the forests fail or give place to scraggy groves of blackjack and Chicka¬
saw plum; still farther westward the mesquite appears in low, scant
orchard-like groves scattered over the plains, with the hackberry and
acacia along the streams; and toward the international boundary the
mesquite gives place to the sage and cactus of the deserts, except where
the rivers have been diverted and the land converted into fields through
human agency. In addition to this general diversity growing out of
climatal conditions, the zone is diversified in more complex fashion by
the variety in soils expressing the composition of the several geologic
formations represented within it. Yet, in spite of climatal inequality
and soil diversity, the more recent continent movements have left a
record in the flora of the province which yet remains legible — from the
Sabine to the Nueces the coast flora is represented along the rivers by

M'OEE.] the SIX PHYSIOGRAPHIC DISTRICTS. 379

scattered and often puny and ill-favored cypresses and live oaks, even
well within the gulfward margin of this inland zone.

In brief, the southwestern district of the coast plain is a segment of
a broad, shallow basin, drained by rivers flowing radially from rim toward
center ; there is a coastal margin of estuaries, broad sounds, and long
natural breakwaters of which part are submerged; there is a subcoastal
zone in which the low-lying plain is divided into low and lower lands, the
former sometimes expanding into the floor-flat fields, tens of thousands
of acres in extent, such as form the marvelous steam- wrought farms of
northern Louisiana; and there is a vast inland zone iu which the con¬
figuration expresses characters of subterrane and drainage much as in
the fourth district, lying east of the alluvial lands of the Mississippi.
As a whole the district is homologous with and closely similar to the
Atlantic Gulf district lying between the Neuse and the Suwanee, save
that one is convex while the other is concave toward the coast, so that in
one the waterways diverge while in the other they converge, and save
that the superficial sands of the east are largely replaced by silts and
muddy clays in the west.

The coastal lowland of southeastern United States thus falls into six
districts, sometimes sharply demarked, sometimes separated serni-
arbitrarily. The first district extends from the Hudson to the Potomac,
and is characterized by an axial ridge with an interior trough and by
broad estuaries nearly insulating it from the mainland; the second
district, extending from the Potomac to the Neuse, is a low, eastward-
sloping plain, characterized by canal-like arms of the sea reaching far
within it, by broad terrace plains of loam, and by a high natural break¬
water peninsulated by broad coastal sounds ; the third district extends
from the Neuse to the Suwanee as a seaward-sloping plain characterized
by vast stretches of pine-clad sands, by a distinctive division into
“high grounds” and “low grounds” near the coast, and by a lower
natural breakwater alongshore which sometimes expands into “sea
islands;” the fourth district, extending from Suwanee Itivcr to the bluff
rampart overlooking the Mississippi from the east, is a peneplain whose
larger undulations reflect geologic structure while the smaller express
stream work, but which, nevertheless, generally inclines Gulfward, charac¬
terized by a low yet distinct concentric ridging that sometimes dominates
the local configuration, by a blanket of loam at the lower levels, by a divi¬
sion into savannas and swamps in the subcoastal region, and by coastal
keys sometimes outrun and drowned by the encroaching Gulf; the fifth
region is the flood-plain of the lower Mississippi, and is characterized
by the base-level attitude over a vast area, by a complex network of
tributaries and distributaries, by natural levees flanking all water¬
ways, by a swampy subcoastal zone, and by a feeble or drowned
natural breakwater ; the sixth district extends from Atchafalaya Bayou
to the Rio Grande as a Gulfward-sloping plain, characterized by orthogo¬
nal and convergent drainage, by a weak interior configuration express-

380

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

ing feebly the local structure and more strongly the fluvial develop¬
ment, by a semitidal subcoastal zone of low and lower lands, and by a
well marked bordering breakwater with extended sounds nearly part¬
ing it from the mainland, the eastern third of the breakwater being
outrun and completely submerged by the waters of the growing Gulf.

This coastal lowland, stretching from New England to Mexico in a
belt averaging 150 miles in width, is the land of the Lafayette formation.

THE GENERAL GEOLOGY OF THE COASTAL PLAIN.

THE METHOD OF CLASSIFICATION.

The coastal plain is classic ground for the geologist. Mitchell and
McClure, joint founders of American geology, discriminated the prov¬
ince and recognized many of its characteristics. Conrad, Mather, the
Rogers brothers, Tuomey and Holmes, Harper, and other representa¬
tives of the second generation of American geologists, made much of their
fame in deciphering the records of ancient life in its strata; Lyell,
the leading geologist of his times, aided in developing its structure;
Hilgard, the prophet of southern geology, analyzed in masterly fashion
the succession among its elements, doing for the Gulf States that which
the magnificent corps of New York geologists did for the northern part
of the country — for just as the New York classification and terminology
gradually extended over the eastern Paleozoic province, and just as the
principles of taxonomy and nomenclature developed there have guided
later students, so Hilgard’s classification and nomenclature are inefface-
ably impressed on the southern province. Still later, Cook in New
Jersey, and other geologists in different parts of the coastal plain, did
much to develop the structure and elucidate the history of the region.
The coastal plain was among the first of American geologic provinces to
receive systematic study, and no province has been more ably investi¬
gated.

The researches in coastal-plain geology antedating the investigation
on which this is a partial report were carried forward in accordance
with the principles enunciated by William Smith and developed by
Lyell, and largely by methods imported from Europe. In these re¬
searches it was postulated that the successive formations are charac¬
terized by distinctive faunas of world- wide extent; and the fossil re¬
mains of these faunas were deemed the most trustworthy if not the only
criteria for classification of the formations. So the primary classifica¬
tion was biotic, either wholly or fundamentally.

The method pursued in the earlier researches was determined by the
primary postulate, and thus was either wholly or largely paleontologie.
Fossils were collected here and there, and by means of them not only
the fossiliferous but the intervening non-fossiliferous strata were classi¬
fied and correlated among themselves and with European deposits.
The features employed in the classification were relatively minute, so

MrGEE.]

CORRELATION BY IIOMOGENY.

381

minute that it is within limits to say that each square mile of terrane
was classified by the characters of a square foot of surface. The method
magnified a single feature and minified all other features of the forma¬
tions.

The principal outcome of these early researches was the development
of a chronology and an interpretation of the history of the province.
The history was an epitome of the record found in the entombed fos¬
sils, and its episodes were episodes in the development of organic life
upon the continent rather than in the development of the continent it¬
self. This history was correlated with that of other parts of the world
and with that of other periods in world-growth in accordance with the
Lyellian scheme of chronology, which was based upon the numerical
proportions of extinct forms to the existing fauna of the earth; and in
elaborating this history little if any account was taken of those depos¬
its (e. g., the Columbia and Lafayette formations) which happen to be
devoid of fossils.

So the fundamental principle recognized in these researches was that
of biotic classification and correlation. The method pursued led to the
magnification of a minute and inconstant rock character and the mini-
fication of the immeasurably preponderant rock characters; and the
history developed by the researches was a biotic chronology, semi¬
abstract in its nature and only remotely connected with the actual
physical development of the continent. The early researches and their
results were admirable, and represent an essential and important stage
in the evolution of geologic science — a stage long considered the acme
of scientific progress, and one in which even to-day half the geologists
of the world are content to rest.

When the investigation now partially reported on was begun certain
new principles were recognized, and as the work progressed certain
new methods were developed. It was recognized that the formation
per se represents a series of deposits laid down by a definitely limited set
of agencies in a definitely limited area within a definitely limited period
of time, and that each formation thus expresses tangibly certain condi¬
tions of a certain part of the continent during a certain period of geo¬
logic time ; it was conceived that the formation discriminated at any
point might be traced by stratigraphic continuity to other points and by
identity or similarity of position to still more distant points ; and it was
also conceived that the conditions of genesis of the formations discrimi¬
nated in different areas might be inferred so exactly that the forma¬
tions might be identified or discriminated on the grounds of similarity
or dissimilarity of genesis. Thus it was recognized that the formation
may be traced and correlated from place to - place, first, by actual
stratigraphic continuity ; second, by identity of materials ; and third, by
similarity in origin, or by liomogeny;1 and it was opined that the suc-

*A:n. Jour. Sci., 3d series, vol. 40, 1800, p. 36.

382

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

cessive formations discriminated by these means would express not
only qualitatively but quantitatively the growth of the continent, and in
terms so definite as to be susceptible of graphic illustration. Thus the
primary classification recognized in the work is physical.

The methods pursued were determined by the primary principles
guiding the work, and led to study of each rock character, major as
well as minor. Fossils were used as criteria in discriminating fossil-
iferous rock masses, but not in wide-reaching correlation; pebbles em¬
bedded in the masses were similarly used as criteria either in conjunc¬
tion with or instead of the fossils, and it was found as the work pro¬
gressed that pebble beds are sometimes the most eloquent of witnesses
as to the relations among rocks; the finer materials of the rocks were
similarly inspected as criteria for identification and classification, and
these materials, whether at the surface or at depths, were carefully
scrutinized. Thus the method led to the study of widespread rather
than local characteristics, of assemblages of features rather than minute
objects, of the square mile of terrane rather than the square foot of rock.
Incidentally in logical statement, but in point of fact as a primary and
important condition, it came about that the method led to a discrimina¬
tion of soils and subsoils and to a classifiation of agricultural and
horticultural resources growing out of the conditions of genesis of suc¬
cessive terranes — a basis of soil classification, and within certain limits
of mineral classification, which is held to be more widely applicable and
more serviceable than any other.

An outcome of the work is the determination of ancient physiog¬
raphies with a high degree of exactitude. It was early foreseen and
afterwards ascertained experimentally that the elucidation of the con¬
ditions of deposition of each formation in each of its parts gives an
image of the local physiography ; and so, as the elucidation progresses,
the images grow and blend in such manner as to give clear conceptions
of the relations of land and sea, of hill and valley, of river and bay
during the period. The images and conceptions thus evolved become
so definite and tangible as to be susceptible of graphic representation
on maps approximating in refinement and accuracy the cartography of
present conditions, and comparison of the physiographies of the suc¬
cessive periods gives a definite physical chronology of the entire
province.

Thus the principles recognized in the coastal plain work are those of
important physical relations and of correlation by conditions of genesis;
the methods pursued involve appreciation of all criteria found in the
rocks in proportion to their volume and their economic value; and the
outcome of the work includes the determination of past conditions of,
the earth with a higher degree of exactitude than any other method
even promises, and the determination of a definite physical chronology
susceptible of extension over a considerable continental area.

It is of course recognized that direct correlation by liomogeny is prac-

M'GEE.]

SPECIAL APPLICABILITY OF HOMOGENY.

383

ticable only within single geologic provinces and that when this method
fails recourse must be had to the biotic criteria found in entombed fos¬
sils, and for this reason the faunas and floras of the coastal plain forma¬
tions receive attention. But in the progress of coastal plain work it
was ascertained, as was synchronously or subsequently ascertained by
half a dozen American and foreign geologists in other provinces, that
geologic history may be read from configuration of the land as readily as
from the contemporaneous rocks and fossils, and thus it has been found
that the limits of a geologic province are no longer confined to the area
of deposition, but include also the area of concurrent degradation ; and
the areas of degradation stretch inland and merge to such an extent
that in many cases the correlation may be extended from the sea part
of a x>ro vince across the land area of the same province to the perhaps
remote sea parts of other provinces. So the applicability of homogenic
correlation has been greatly extended through the development of that
branch of geologic science which relates to the interpretation of topo¬
graphic forms.

It is of course recognized, too, that the physical chronology developed
in a single geologic province can not be compared directly with the
biotic chronology either for other provinces or for the world at large ;
but it is in this fact, in connection with the unique conditions of the
coastal plain, that the plan of work in this province finds its principal
strength. Although it has been well shown by H. S. Williams, by
Calvin, by Renevier, and by other paleontologists, that the faunas of
the earlier eons in earth history varied by reason of local variations in
the conditions of sedimentation,. it is in general a primary paleontologic
postulate (albeit commonly implicit) that genera and species have
always been continent- wide if not world-wide in distribution, and have
remained alike throughout their wide habitats; and the strength and
weakness of biotic correlation are substantially measured by the degrees
of validity and falsity in this primary postulate. Now, it is known that
the faunas and floras of the present are diverse, that this diversity is
due largely to varying conditions of environment, and that one of the
most potent factors in environment is climate; and it is a fair inference
that the faunas and floras of the past reflected climatal conditions in
like manner, though possibly or even probably in a degree diminishing
with the remoteness of the period. There is thus an element of error
in biotic correlation which can never be eliminated by comparison of
faunas and floras of distinct but restricted deposits, however numerous
or however widely distributed over the earth — an element of error which
can be eliminated only in a single province of sufficient extent to express
considerable climatal variation in its various parts. The coastal plain
of southeastern United States is so conditioned more completely than
any other thus far known: it stretches over 15° of latitude; there is a
still wider range in longitude, so related to the continent as to involve
a considerable climatal range; and in general the relation between land

384

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

and water during past times lias been fairly uniform throughout the
province. The coastal plain thus affords an incomparable opportunity
for measuring the influence of climate on the faunas and floras of past
ages, and thus forming a standard for future paleontologic correlation.
But in order to eliminate the element of error inhering in paleontologic
correlation, and in order to establish a standard for future work of that
character, it is essential that the formations shall be classified and cor¬
related, not by paleontology, but by some other method. Such a method
is found in lioinogeny, and consequently the elucidation of the physical
history of the province and the determination of the distribution of
each genus and species during each period will not only permit the
translation of the local chronology into a general one, but promises to
afford an improved basis for general chronology.

In accordance with these considerations the coastal-plain work has
been devoted primarily to the determination of physical relations,
and for the present only secondarily to the discovery and determina¬
tion of fossils; and in accordance with these considerations the defini¬
tion of the formations is determined primarily by physical relation and
only incidentally, if at all, by biotic relation. In accordance with the
same considerations the work of earlier geologists in the province is
adopted only in so far as the principles and methods agree with those
now set forth; and so in epitomizing present knowledge concerning the
structure of the coastal plain, special prominence is given to units de¬
fined by physical relation.

THE COLUMBIA FORMATION.1

•

Next to the Lafayette, this is the most extensive formation of the
coastal plain ; but unlike the Lafayette it varies widely in composition,
structure, and thickness in different portions of its extent. It is the
youngest considerable formation of the province, and in general may
properly be regarded as a superficial deposit.

In the type locality — the District of Columbia — the most conspicuous
phase of the formation is developed only along the Potomac Elver and
its principal affluents, and consists of a sheet of brown loam passing
down into a bed of pebbles and bowlders. These members, which inter¬
grade through community of materials and through inter stratification,
and which are definitely connected in genesis, vary in thickness both
relatively and absolutely; the loam ranges from 3 or 4 to 20 or 30 feet
in thickness, while the coarser bed ranges from 12 to 15 feet downward.
The distribution of the members, as well as of the deposit as a whole,
is intimately related to the local physiography; the coarser member

1 The Columbia formation was defined and briefly described in print in the Report of the Health
Officer of the District of Columbia for 1884-85, 1886, p. 20 ; it has been described either in general or
in part in Am. Jour. Sci., 3d ser., vol. 31, 1886, p. 473; in Proceedings of Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., vol. 36,
1888, p. 221 ; in the Seventh Annual Report of the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey, 1888, pp. 594-612,
and elsewhere; in Am. Jour. Sci., 3d ser., vol. 36, 1888, pp. 368-388, 448, and 466; in Am. Jour. Sci., 3d ser.,
vol. 40, 1890, pp. 16-18 ; and elsewhere.

MrGEE. J

THE TYPICAL COLUMBIA FORMATION.

385

is thickest and its bowlders largest and most sharply angular toward
the gorge of crystalline rocks through which the Potomac embouches
at Washington; the loam member culminates in thickness 3 or 4 miles
from the mouth of the gorge; farther from the gorge the loam differ¬
entiates into sand and silt, while the lower member thins and nearly or
quite disappears; and there is a parallel variation in the deposit going
with variation in altitude, which need not be set forth in detail. In
short, the various phenomena of the deposit indicate that its materials
were collected in the Potomac valley and laid down in the estuary
formed by the river when the land stood 150 feet or more lower than
to-day, and when the climate was colder and river work more active
than now. There is a less conspicuous phase of the formation, also de¬
veloped in the District of Columbia, which consists of rearranged debris
of several terranes, variously assorted and transported for short dis¬
tances by the action of the waves rather than fluvial currents. There
is a third phase of the formation, fairly well displayed in the southern¬
most angle of the District of Columbia and at low levels, consisting of
loamy silt passing down into a silty loam which may in turn grade into
a silty sand, the materials displaying more or less definite stratification.
The composition, structure, and texture of this phase of the formation
are such that on exposure to the weather in cliffs and scarps it assumes
a peculiar and distinctive configuration ; it is cleft into a labyrinth of
gullies separating steep pinnacles, cusps, and spurs, so that the cliff is
never smooth, but always dentate or serrate in a remarkable yet remark¬
ably uniform fashion. The three phases have, in earlier publications,
been designated respectively the fluvial phase, the interfluvial phase ,
and the loivlevel phase.

North of the type locality the characteristics of the formation are
maintained so far as the typical physiography is retained. On Patapsco
River at Baltimore the loam and gravel bed are developed as character¬
istically as in Washington 1 ; at the mouth of the Susquehanna the devel¬
opment is equally characteristic and still more extensive ; and far above
the mouth of the river, even in the intermontane valleys of the Appala¬
chians at Harrisburg, Northumberland and elsewhere, the formation
may also be found; on the Schuylkill and Delaware at Philadelphia
both the loamy and bowldery members are well developed, the former
being extensively exposed in pits from which it is extracted for brick¬
making; at Trenton it maintains related characteristics, as it does
also farther up the Delaware nearly to the terminal moraine 10 miles
above Easton. Over the interstream portions of the Piedmont plateau

1 The accompanying Tl. xxxm, illustrates a typical exposure of the Columbia formation reproduced
mechanically from a photograph. The locality is the western side of Ensor street, between Pres¬
ton and Biddle, Baltimore; altitude 130 feet. The loam isorange yellow, changing to brown in the
lower portion, where it becomes coarser and forms a sandy matrix in which the pebbles are imbedded ;
the pebbles are chiefly quartzite, derived mainly from the Potomac formation, but in part from the
neighboring crystalline terranes. Below the Columbia formation the Potomac arkose is exposed; the
unconformity is accentuated in nature by a line of jet black cement composed of ferric oxide, cobalt, etc.

12 GrEOL - 25

386

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

in northern New Jersey it passes into an ancient and discontinuous
drift sheet running beneath the terminal moraine, as recently ascer¬
tained by Salisbury. The interfluvial phase is of wide distribution
though limited thickness between the rivers; in the cliffs of the Chesa¬
peake Bay the lowlevel phase is frequently displayed. The altitude
reached by the formation steadily increases northward from the Poto¬
mac, River nearly to the terminal moraine of the later ice invasion, so
that the deposit overspreads the greater part of the northern lowland;
the insulated knobs and buttes characterizing the topography of this
region represent eminences rising above the Columbia waters, but whose
sides and angle were swept smooth and round by the Columbia waves;
and the deposits skirting the Susquehanna, the Schuylkill, the Lehigh,
and the Delaware show that the waters rose even higher in the Appala¬
chian valleys than along the fall line, thus indicating northwestward
tilting of the land during the Columbia period.

The extension of the formation from the type locality northward
may briefly be characterized as a sheet of loam generally grading into
a basal pebble bed, best developed along the rivers, thinning out and
running into local and sublocal debris over the divides, becoming silty
at low levels and toward the coast, and grading into an ancient premo-
rainal drift sheet toward the terminal moraine of northern New Jersey.

South of the type locality the characteristics of the formation grad¬
ually change. Along waterways, it is true, the fluvial phase retains the
typical aspect, as on the Rappahannock, the James, the Appomattox,
the Roanoke, and intermediate rivers, save that the bowlders of the
basal bed progressively diminish in dimensions from the Potomac to the
Roanoke, and save that the slight element of unoxidized rock debris,
particularly noteworthy on the Susquehanna and Delaware, completely
disappears from the loam; but as the relief of the coastal plain dimin¬
ishes the estuarine deposits stretch farther over the interstream tracts,
and the interfluvial phase increases correspondingly in extent and thick¬
ness, despite the diminution in altitude. Moreover, the component of
sand in the loam increases and the clay component decreases southward
from the Potomac until, between the Roanoke and the Neuse, the loam
of the river sides and terraces is conspicuously sandy. The peculiar den¬
tate cliffs marking the presence and recording the structure and texture
of the lowlevel phase are prominent on the lower James and sometimes
elsewhere toward the coast, yet not so conspicuous as in other portions
of the province. This is the topographic area of smooth yet distinctly
terraced lowlands, and the terraces represent the Columbia formation,
which, albeit more and more sandy toward the south, yet retains so
much of clay in the matrix as to maintain the smoothness of terrace sur¬
face and steepness of terrace scarp by which the area is characterized.
The maximum altitude reached by the deposits and the terraces dimin¬
ishes southward to the latitude of Cape Hatteras at about the same
rate as that of increase northward from the Potomac; so that the best

LIBRAS V

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXXIII

COLUMBIA AND POTOMAC FORMATIONS ON ENSOR STREET, BETWEEN PRESTON AND BIDDLE STREETS, BALTIMORE.

Llofirtfi /

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

MrGEE.]

THE PINE-CLAD SANDS OF THE COLUMBIA.

387

developed estuarine phase of the formation on the Roanoke is only 40
or 50 feet above tide level instead of 80 to 150 feet as on the Potomac,
100 to 200 feet as on the Patapsco, and proportionately higher levels on
the Susquehanna. Although the maximum altitude of the formation
diminishes southward, it continues to mantle the divides and run up
the waterways quite to the fall line; for the lowland inclines southward
as strongly as the deposits or the old shore lines.

Still farther southward the differentiation of the deposits continues.
Iu the north the fluvial phase is conspicuous and the interfluvial phase

inconspicuous, but in the Carolinas

and eastern Georgia the fluvial

phase weakens while the phase developed between the rivers strengthens
and expands until it gives character to the entire coastal plain; in the
north the formation is predominantly loamy or perhaps gravelly at the
higher and silty at the lower levels, while in the Carolinas and Georgia
the loamy aspect shrinks and the sandy aspect stretches out until by
far the greater part of the formation becomes a simple sand bed, limited
in thickness but vast in area. This is the lowland district characterized
by pine-clad sand plains; and the sand and the plains represent the
interfluvial phase of the Columbia formation. In this smooth lowland
the rivers have cut their channels but a little way below the general
level, so that deep estuaries were not formed when the base-level was
lower; and the fluvial belts of the deposit differ but little in composi¬
tion from the general mass and extend but little farther inland. Toward
the fall line the sands are commonly coarse, and along the rivers they
contain sheets of pebbles with occasional bowlders of Piedmont rocks,
chiefly of the vein quartz by which the gneisses are intersected; toward
the coast the sands become finer and are interstratified with silts and
finally grade into silts and peculiar muddy clays, of which the well known
u pluff” mud of Charleston is an example. Still the exposures in the
river banks are always more loamy than those of the divides, and river
deposits partaking at the same time of the character of ancient alluvium
and of typical Columbia loams lie along the Savannah at Augusta, along
the Santee system at Columbia and other points, and along other large
rivers about their intersection with the fall line. Sometimes here, as
generally in another part of the coastal plain, these riparian accumula¬
tions are known as u second bottoms,” but here they represent only the
closing episodes of the Columbia period, not the period in entirety.

The source of the sands composing the Columbia formation in this
district is easily traced. Here the Lafayette formation is magnificently
developed and exceptionally sandy; and with the advent of the Colum¬
bia waters the Lafayette sands were broken up and assorted, the finer
materials were carried farther away, and the coarser were dropped as a
littoral deposit over the remnant of the older terrane; sometimes the
waves were destructive agents alone, and the orange-tinted loams of
the Lafayette were laid bare rather than buried; and sometimes the
post-Columbia erosion invaded the later deposit so energetically that

388

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

whole hillsides have been denuded. Thus there has been developed
in the lowland a broad area in which some hills are of Columbia sand
and some of older Lafayette loam, and these have been discriminated
by the inhabitants and are colloquially known respectively as the u sand
hills ” and “ red hills ” of the Carolinas.

In this district the lowland margin of the formation increases in alti¬
tude and stretches toward the interior so far as to cover the entire
coastal plan and overlap upon the Piedmont terrane, particularly in
the region of the Santee and Savannah rivers. Over the divide between
these rivers the “sand hill’7 phase of the formation is characteristically
developed up to G50 feet above tide. This is the culminating area of
the Columbia formation on the Atlantic coast. Northeastward it sinks
to less than 75 feet above tide on the Cape Hatteras axis; southwest-
ward its shore line inclines seaward until about Mobile and Pascagoula
bays the highest deposits rise barely 25 feet above the Gulf. During
this latest of important episodes in continental development, an episode
so recent that since its close the rivers have done little more than clear
out their immediate channels, the continental outline was modified to
the extent that the southeastern angle of the United States disappeared
and the common waters of the Gulf and ocean stretched in a nearly di¬
rect line from the head of Mobile Bay to the head of Pamlico Sound.

An imperfect illustration of the friable Columbia sands so extensively
developed in the district appears in PI. xxxvi, which is a mechanical
reproduction from a photograph taken a mile east of the state house in
Columbia, South Carolina. They overlie unconformably the Lafayette
formation, which is here so thin that the unconformable contact with the
Potomac below is also shown. The geography of the Columbia period
is depicted in PI. xli.

The pine-clad sands of central Georgia extend beyond the limits of
that commonwealth far into Florida, generally covering the northern
portion of the latter state east of the Suwanee and stretching with
scarcely broken continuity beyond the St. Augustine- Waccassassie
isthmus over much of the surface of the peninsula proper. Here the
fluvial phase of the formation fails utterly; for the rivers either flow in
shallow canals bearing little mark of fluvial action, or are skirted by
alluvial belts of coarse sand from which the finer materials have been
washed seaward.

From New Jersey to central Georgia the natural districts into which
the Columbia terrane falls coincide approximately with the natural
topographic districts of the coastal plain; but farther westward the co¬
incidence fails. The remaining districts of the formation are (1) that
extending from central Georgia to eastern Mississippi ; (2) the district
of the Mississippi embayment, extending thence westward about to the
Sabine Liver, northward beyond the mouth of the Ohio, and overlap¬
ping on the east and the west the ramparts and undulating plains over*'

m'gee.] THE “SECOND BOTTOMS” OF ALABAMA. 389

looking tlie Mississippi flood plain; and (3) tlie district extending from
the Sabine to the Rio Grande and thence to Vera Cruz in Mexico.

In the type area the formation is differentiated into fluvial, interfluvial,
and lowlevel phases, the first being the most conspicuous. Passing-
south ward there is a progressive change in the direction of unification
and in the development of the interfluvial phase until it alone is con¬
spicuous, which culminates about where the altitude of the formation
culminates in South Carolina and Georgia. In the district extending
from central Georgia to eastern Mississippi the differentiation recurs
and the interfluvial and fluvial phases approach equality in prominence,
though the latter assumes certain distinctive characteristics which are
significant of genetic conditions.

In southwestern Georgia, extreme southern Alabama, and the pan¬
handle of Florida, the pine-clad sand plains sink and flatten until the
“red hills” rise far above their level and they become sand valleys rather
than sand hills. The marginal sands continue to display the composi¬
tion and texture and structure of the Carolina sands, i. e., remain com¬
monly structureless above, faintly stratified medially, more distinctly
bedded and sometimes cross-stratified or pebble-charged at the base,
while at lower levels and greater distances from the margin the sands
become silty and toward the coast pass into silts, muds, or clays with
sand partings. Meantime the rivers are flanked by belts of loam with
basal pebble beds more or less closely approaching the fluvial deposit
of the type locality. Here, as in the north, the loam is more homo¬
genous and more closely similar not only in its different parts on the
same river but among various rivers than the phase developed on the
divides; here, as in the north, the predominant element of the loam
is clay (or finely comminuted rock debris commonly so designated) evi¬
dently derived largely from the residua of the Piedmont and Appa¬
lachian rocks, while the interfluvial phase is coarser and of local or sub¬
local origin; here, as in the north, the loam grades into a pebble bed,
sometimes thin and inconspicuous, again thick and conspicuous; here,
as in the north, the thickness and extent of the pebble bed are in at
least a general way proportionate to the size of the rivers along which
the deposits are accumulated; and here, as in the north, the pebbles
represent two petrographic elements, one evidently derived from the
older coastal-plain formations of the vicinity, and the other made up of
the harder rocks iu the terranes traversed by tlie river along which the
gravel lies. But there is one essential difference between the fluvial
component of the south and that of the north : In the north the fluvial
phase of the deposit rises only to the level of the interfluvial sands and
loams (except about the margin of the contemporaneous drift sheet), but
in the south the fluvial deposits rise far above the level of the interflu¬
vial deposits ; indeed, throughout lowland Alabama these loamy or silty
riverside lands (the “second bottoms” of the vernacular) stretch all the
way from the coastal zone to and sometimes beyond the fall line.

390 THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Although the loam of the riversides is more uniform than the sands
of the divides or the muds or silts of the coast, yet there are certain
differences, of which some are local and significant of restricted con¬
ditions, while others are systemic and characteristic of the various loam
belts of the district. The systemic diversity includes progressive in¬
crease in the element of sand from the inland limit of the belt to its
coalescence with the general terrane and a concurrent increase in the
silt element, so that the lower courses of the rivers frequently display
the peculiar dentate cliff’s characteristic of the lowlevel phase of the
middle Atlantic slope, and this is true even above the maximum alti¬
tudes reached by the deposits over the interstream areas.

Typical exposures of the u second bottom” loam of this district oc¬
cur on the Chattahoochee Eiver about Columbus, Georgia, the best
section being that on the western side of the river just above the
mouth of Mill Creek, between the villages of Girard and Phoenix
City (or Lively), Alabama. This section is illustrated in Fig. 28, which
is a mechanical reproduction from a photograph. Here the deposit

Fig. 28. — “Second bottom” phase of the Columbia formation, near Columbus. Ga.

lorms a precipitous cliff' face, of which two-thirds consists of red-brown
loam hardly distinguishable in hand specimens from that displayed in
the type locality or that of Ensor street, Baltimore, represented in
PI. xxxiii. The lower third of the exposure is made up of similar
loam intermixed with pebbles and grading into a gravel bed, just as
does the Baltimore deposit. The deposit rests directly on disintegrated

MrCiEE.]

EARTH-WARPING RECORDED IN “SECOND BOTTOMS. 391

The material of the gravel on the Chattahoochee, as on the Patapsco,
is such as to indicate its source: the prevailing material is quartz,
rounded or subangular in shape, the former unquestionably derived
immediately from the Tuscaloosa and Lafayette formations of the
vicinity, and the latter (as well as the former, more remotely) from the
veins of quartz in the contiguous Piedmont terrane. Other materials
represent the more obdurate crystalline rocks of the same terrane. As
usual, the deposit here forms terraces, and the altitude of the higher
terraces is approximately 2G0 feet above tide, while about the con¬
fluence of the Chattahoochee and Flint rivers (to form the Appalachi-
cola) the altitude of the Columbia sands barely reaches 100 feet.

The “second bottom” phase of the Columbia formation is similarly
displayed on the Tuscaloosa (or Black Warrior) River at Tuscaloosa in a
mile- wide terrace rising 50 feet above the river and 100 feet above tide,
while the “pine meadows” of southern Alabama, representing the
interstream phase of the same formation, rise only 20 or 30 feet above
the river carrying the Tuscaloosa waters into the head of Mobile Bay.
Even at Tuscaloosa the loam is silty, and displays a tendency to weather
into dentate forms; for this peculiar erosion habit everywhere reflects
the composition of the loam and indicates the presence of a certain pro¬
portion of silt.

The conspicuous development of the “second bottoms” extends to
the tributaries of the Pascagoula, as well as to those of the more east¬
erly rivers. The Okatibbee, in the neighborhood of Meridian and Co-
rinne, is flanked by broad loam plains, and near Meridian the upper
division of the loam is worked as brick clay, while the lower portion
consists of stratified sand with intercalated silt layers. The Tallahoma
at Ellisville is flanked by a mile-wide terrace, so trenched by the river
as to expose a 25-foot cliff of which the upper half is homogeneous loam,
undistinguishable ill general aspect from that on the Potomac (though
minute examination shows certain difference in composition), grading
downward into stratified sandy and silty loam with some heavy layers
of light gray silt which assume the usual dentate form on erosion; and
even as far southward as Hattiesburg, Leaf River is similarly flanked
by loam plains of like aspect. Meridian, Ellisville, and Hattiesburg are,
respectively, 330, 240, and 150 feet above tide, while the coastal phase
of the Columbia formation at the mouth of Pascagoula River rises
scant 40 feet above the Gulf waters.

In brief, throughout the district stretching from Suwanee River to
the Pascagoula, the Columbia formation is differentiated more promi¬
nently than anywhere else in its vast terrane into fluvial and coastal
(or interfluvial) phases; the coastal phase lies low, generally forming a
continuous mantle of sand toward the interior and of silt toward the
Gulf shore; while the fluvial phase stretches inland in long arms for a
distance of 100 miles or more and rises to a height of several hundred
feet. These remarkably extended belts of riparian loam record a slack-

392

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

water condition more decided than simple lifting of the base-level could
produce, a record of land-tilting which is fortunately corroborated in
the most complete manner by the distribution of the contemporaneous
interfluvial deposits along the Atlantic slope toward the east and along
the Mississippi toward the west.

From the Delaware to the Pascagoula the local development of the
Columbia formation varies with two factors, of which by far the more
important is the volume of local drainage; and this variation extends to
and includes the great river of the continent. The drainage basins of
the Atlantic and Gulf slopes from the Delaware to the Pascagoula, as
they existed when cut off above by ice and below by ocean during the
Columbia period, aggregate about 200,000 square miles; the drainage
basin of the Mississippi (now a million and a quarter square miles),
when reduced by the northern ice and southern waters during the same
period, was about 750,000 square miles; and it is accordingly not sur¬
prising to find in the Pleistocene estuary of the great river a volume
and variety of deposit exceeding much the like qualities of the contem¬
poraneous deposits toward the east and north.

In the Mississippi embayment the Columbia formation displays four
phases which are commonly discriminated, and by some students have
been considered to represent successive periods or episodes; but while
these i (liases are not strictly contemporaneous, and while they commonly
fall into certain stratigraphic sequences, they nevertheless represent
local and temporary conditions of deposition during a single period
rather than a definite time series covering several periods. Enumerated
in the order of the age sometimes assigned from youngest to oldest, and
also in the order of liypsographie distribution from highest to lowest,
these phases are: (1) Brown (or yellow) loam; (2) Loess; (3) Orange
Sand (of Safford); and (4) Port Hudson. The order of the first two
members might be reversed with equal propriety in the southern por¬
tion of the embayment; for the loess is but a phase of the loam, and is
frequently underlain as well as overlain by loamy deposits.

The loess of the lower Mississippi is a light buff homogeneous aggre¬
gation of finely divided particles, such as was discriminated first on the
Rhine, then in this region, and afterward in various parts of the Mis¬
sissippi valley and in other lands. As usual it displays the paradox of
friability so perfect that it may be impressed by the fingers, combined
with obduracy so great that it stands in vertical cliffs for a decade with¬
out even losing the marks of spade and pick ; as usual in interior America
it is calcareous, effervescing freely under acid; as usual it contains cal¬
careous nodules (loess- kind chen) and dendritic tubules of carbonate of
lime; and as usual it yields, from the mouth of the Ohio to the Louisiana
line, shells of land snails sometimes associated (particularly at the lower
levels) with shells of water snails and other fluviatile mollusca. Here
as elsewhere, too, it forms one of the most individual and expressive of

M'OEE.]

THE LOESS OF THE MISSISSIPPI.

393

superficial deposits; the erosion forms developed within it are steep
high hills and sharp slopes, divided by frequent ravines and valleys all
of autogenetic type; it gives to the river bluffs gigantic dentate forms
characteristic as the pygmy toothed forms of the Columbia silts on the
Atlantic coast — huge cusps scores or hundreds of feet high separated
by V-shaped notches cut down perhaps to the water’s edge; it forms the
most fertile of soils, particularly for the vine and the fruit tree, and so men
congregate upon it and transform the face of nature; in the lower Mis¬
sissippi region the roadways are beaten by hoofs, ground by wheels, and
washed by storms until the way of the traveler is a dark defile bounded
by vertical walls a score of feet high, often so narrow that two teams
can not pass, with luxuriant canes and leafy branches intertwined above
(Fig. 47).

In geographic distribution this phase of the Columbia formation skirts
the higher river sides, crowning throughout the bluff rampart overlook¬
ing the Mississippi Hood plain from the east, and similarly crowning the
insulated parallel rampart of Arkansas, Crowley Ridge; but toward the
south its zone widens to 10 miles at Yazoo, 15 miles at Vicksburg, and
20 miles on the Mississippi-Louisiana line; and thence toward the
mouth of Pearl River it still further widens, but parts with its fossils
and gradually loses its distinctive characters.

In hypsograpliic distribution the loess is specially noteworthy. Here,
as frequently elsewhere, it forms the highest lands of its region ; in the
bluff rampart east of the modern Mississippi flood plain it overlooks not
only the great river on the west but the undulating peneplain on the
east; and it is by this deposit that the old erosion scarp is built up and
carried half across the valleys to make this prominent boundary more
prominent than of old — the highest summits in the Chickasaw bluffs
and Choctaw bluffs alike, and the long marginal ridges so often tra¬
versed by modern roads, are built of this deposit.

In stratigraphic relation the loess usually forms the surface and rests
upon the brown loam; but in some exposures the brown loam is divided,
a part of it overlapping and another part underlying the loess, and in
some cases the loess either rests upon or grades into coarse sand and
gravel (the Orange Sand of Safford) or is similarly related to the Port
Hudson clays. The loess and the loam are always conformable and
always intergrade whether the latter lies only below or both above and
below. The intercalation of the loess within the brown loam in lens-
sliaped sheets is well displayed in the numberless exposures between
the Mississippi and the Big Black about the latitude of Vicksburg.

In brief, the loess of the lower Mississippi region may be characterized
as a peculiar condition of the brown loam, or as an imperfectly demarked
phase of the great formation into which both deposits fall. As shown
by Hilgard, the loess condition or phase is strongly individualized in the
central part of its area only, losing character peripherally; in local
sections it may sometimes be seen to lie entirely within the loam in

394

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

lens-shaped masses at high levels ; and in like manner the entire deposit
may be regarded as a distorted, elongated, and irregular lens rising to
the surface centrally but feathering out within the loam toward the
complex periphery.

The brown loam is a massive or obscurely bedded sheet of finely divi¬
ded rock matter, made up chiefly of the argillaceous and heterogeneous
materials commonly called clay, but partly of sand, silt, etc. Like the
loess it is sometimes calareous, though commonly to a less extent than
that deposit; like the loess, too, it frequently contains calcareous
nodules, but these are commonly more or less ferruginous; it is emi¬
nently friable, yet its prevailing forms are steep slopes rather than
vertical cliffs, and the erosion profiles are flatter than those of the loess;
it is a fertile soil, and was luxuriantly wooded or cane-grown until man
began to wrest its area from nature; and the roadways lie in gullies on
the hillsides, but the gully walls are sloping.

In geographic distribution the brown loam extends inland from the
rampart overlooking the Mississippi flood plain for 10 to 100 miles,
commonly dying out in a veneer of sublocal debris, yet sometimes main¬
taining considerable thickness to the very bases of the rounded knobs
which formed islands in the Columbia embayment of the Mississippi ; for
this deposit forms the terraces circumscribing Gordon and Lumpkins
mountains and their homologues in northern Mississippi and Tennessee.
On the Eocene hill land of northern Mississippi it extends well toward the
headwaters of the Big Black and the Pearl, nearly to the Alabama and
Pascagoula watershed ; farther southward its margin withdraws west¬
ward to Pearl River, 20 miles below Jackson, where it divides, a narrow
arm (in which the deposits simulate the u second bottoms” of the
Alabama rivers) running down that river, and the main margin sweep¬
ing southwestward to cross the Mississippi-Louisiana boundary 25 or
30 miles from the great river. Thence the inland margin of the deposit
bears east-southeastward to mid-length of Biloxi River, the deposit
itself differentiating in this direction into clays and sands — the Biloxi
sands and Pontcliartrain clays of Johnson.1 In general the western
margin of the area and of this phase of the Columbia formation coin¬
cides with the Mississippi bluff rampart; but the brown loam reappears
beyond the great river in Crowley Ridge and wherever else the loess is
found and, in modified form, in the Calcasieu prairies.

In hypsograpliic distribution, this phase of the formation ranges from
altitudes of over GOO feet to somewhat below tide level. Its maximum
altitude is attained in northern Mississippi and western Tennessee,
about Holly Springs and La Grange; thence its height diminishes
slowly both northward and southward to some 450 feet at the mouth of
the Ohio and about the same over the Grand Gulf ridge in southern
Mississippi, and then much more rapidly southeastward to 50 feet or
less where it passes into the Biloxi sands near Biloxi Bay.

1 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., vol. 2, 1890, p. 24.

MrGEE.]

THE LOESS AND BROWN LOAM INTERGRADE.

395

Pig. 29. — Brown loam with silt layer at base; Arsenal Cut, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The buttressed
bed mid-height of the exposure is the silt layer, or the “pinnacly clay.” It contains at base fine
gravel grains sparsely dissemminated. Typical Port Hudson clays occur below the bottom of this
cutting in the river bank. Exposure. 12 feet.

and 31, reproduced mechanically from photographs of the Arsenal cut
at Baton Rouge, of the river bluff at Port Hickey, and of the principal
bluff at Bayou Sara, all in Louisiana; and landslip unconformities
between the loess (or loam) and the subjacent sands are illustrated in
Pigs. 32 and 33, reproduced mechanically from photographs taken a
mile south of Natchez, Mississippi.

In brief, the brown loam is a sheet of the material indicated by its
name, mantling 50,000 square miles of the nominally low yet actually

The complex stratigraphic relation of the brown loam to the loess has
already been indicated. It lies unconformably on the Lafayette and
all older formations of the region ; in 00 or 95 per cent of the good ex¬
posures north of the thirty-first parallel it grades into sands and gravels
(Salford’s Orange Sand); at low levels in the north and generally south
of the thirty-first parallel it grades either directly or through a sandy
stratum into Port Hudson clays; while in localities of high relief, as
about Vicksburg and Natchez, the exposures are sometimes complicated
by landslips in such fashion that the loam rests with apparent uncon¬
formity upon both its own basal sands and the Port Hudson clays. The
gradation into the Port Hudson is shown graphically in Figs. 29, 30,

396

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

high land overlooking the Mississippi flood-plain from the east ; it lies on
a distorted surface ranging from 600 feet above tide to below sea level ;
the loess is partly enfolded within and partly superimposed upon it while,
with its basal gravel, it rests unconformably upon all other formations
of the region; and it grades into the other phases of the formation which
it represents, vertically downward into the Orange Sand (of S afford) at
high levels and the Port Hudson at low levels, and horizontally into the
Biloxi sands and Pontchartrain clays as well as into certain newer phases
of the Port Hudson in the lower part of the Mississippi embayment.

Fig. 30. — Relation of brown loam to silty beds and Port Hudson clays ; Port Hickey, Louisiana. The
“ pinnacly clays ” are greatly thickened, and a sandy bed at their base contains gravel up to ^ inch.
This bed grades by interleaving into typical Port Hudson clays. Exposure, 75 feet.

This difference goes with a related difference in the constitution of the
formation: in the type locality the bowlder bed is the base of the
formation as exposed above tide level; in the Mississippi embayment a
heavy mass of clays underlying the gravel is exposed above tide level.

The coarse phase of the Columbia formation lying beneath the brown
loam (Safford’s Orange Sand) may be either gravel or sand, or both
combined. The most conspicuous display of this bed is at Natchez,
where the sands are stratified and cross-stratified, sometimes marked
by lines or parted by beds of gravel and calcareous clays of the Port Hud¬
son type, and fully 100 feet thick. The exposures at this locality are
especially noteworthy, not only by reason of the exceptional volume of
the sand and gravel, but also by reason of the occurrence of fossils, and

SPREE.]

SECTION OF THE COLUMBIA AT NATCHEZ.

307

perhaps still more by reason of the definite stratigraphic relations there
displayed. The sequence observed in the bluffs overlooking the river
for a mile above and two miles below Natchez is greatly complicated by
landslips, but when clear is about as follows: loess containing abun¬
dant shells of pulmoniferous mollusca, 10 to 50 feet; brown loam, un-
fossiliferous, sometimes orange-tinted, becoming silty and sand-parted

Fig. 31. — Brown loam with silt bed and gravel beds near base; Bayou Sara, Louisiana. The silt bed
is thinner than at Port Hickey, but tho basal sands and gravels are better developed, the pebbles reach¬
ing -i- or § inch. The Port Hudson clays form the lower part of the exposure, which is about 30 feet.

below, 10 to 40 feet; stratified loamy sand, generally fine, sometimes
silty, 5 to 15 feet; tenacious blue, ashen, or gray clay with calcareous
nodules (Port Hudson), 10 to 15 feet; cross-stratified sand with scat¬
tered pebbles and intercalated pebbly beds, becoming coarser below,
30 to 50 feet; stratified gravel, often cemented by iron, 5 to 15 feet;
greenish and blue clays (Grand Gulf), 5 to 10 feet above low water.
These divisions, be it noted (except the Port Hudson and Grand Gulf),
are purely arbitrary; no definite line can be drawn between loess and

398

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

loam, loam and line sand, line sand and coarse sand, or coarse sand and
gravel ; even the clays occur in lenticular beds of which one is fairly con¬
stant, though others appear at several lower horizons; the arbitrarily de¬
fined beds merge by intergrading of materials and by interstratifi cation ;
lines of gravel sometimes occur in the lower part of the loam, and lenses of

Fig. 32. — Loess resting on stratified sand, near Natchez, Mississippi. In a part of the section the
loess grades into the sand ; but in the part figured there is a slight unconformity of structure and
coincident change in material from fine above to coarse below. Fossils are found in both loess and
sand, and the Port Hudson clays crop out beneath in a neighboring cut. Exposure, 90 feet.

loam sometimes occur in the lower part of the coarse sand and also in
the gravel; the arbitrarily defined beds of fine sand, coarse sand, and
gravel, as well as of Port Hudson clays, are inconstant from exposure
to exposure, even from place to place in the same exposure, and are in¬
terleaved in complex and ever- varying fashion, so that it can be said
only that fine sand predominates above, coarse sand medially, and
gravels below, and not at all that the materials designated are wholly
confined to the respective beds; no break in deposition is indicated by

M'oee.]

COLUMBIA FOSSILS FROM NATCHEZ.

399

unconformity, by old soil stuff, or in any other way; and although the
coarser materials are locally ferruginated and sometimes firmly cemented,
the general aspect of antiquity is alike from summit to base of the ex¬
posure. Only at the base of the gravel bed is there, toward the south-

Fig. 33. — Landslip contact between loess and stratified sand; 1 mile south of Natchez, Mississippi.
The loess is of the usual massive fossiliferous type ; the stratified sand is coarse and sometimes gravelly,
particularly toward base. In a neighboring cut the deposits intergrade. Exposure, 25 feet.

ern extremity of the exposure, any indication of discontinuity in deposi¬
tion, in lieu of alternations in the character of the deposit from loess and
fine clay to gravel in a clayey matrix; for here the gravels are uncon-
formably underlain by dark clays or mudstones of Grand Gulf type.
The loess is unusually rich in shells of land and swamp mollusca,
together with a few aquatic species; the stratified fine sands about the
base of the brown loam, and in some cases the gravelly beds well down
toward the Port Hudson clays, have yielded elephantine bones and teeth,
including several nearly iter feet skulls of the mastodon and at least one

400

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

of the American elephant, to which a matrix of coarse gravel adhered
at the time of examination. The Tort Hudson clays are, as usual, char¬
acterized by abundant and large nodules of carbonate of lime commonly
arranged in strings and sheets. The sand is in general predominantly
quartzose, but the pebbles of the gravel and many grains of the sand are
chert, similar to that forming the pebbles of the Lafayette formation in
the same region — indeed both the sands and the pebbles of the deposit
are evidently derived in large measure immediately from that latest of
ante-Pleistocene formations. It is noteworthy, however, that the basal
gravel beds yield moderately abundant granite and greenstone peb¬
bles, resembling the Lake Superior rocks in appearance, up to 0 inches
in diameter.

In geographic distribution the sands and gravels of this phase of the
Columbia formation are essentially conterminous with the brown loam,
though they may be traced farther into the Port Hudson clays where
the loam and the clays intergrade horizontally, as at Bayou Sara, Port
Hickey, and Baton Kouge. In hypsographic distribution they follow
the loam (and the loess, when no loam lies below), of which they are
indeed but the basal portion, just as the bowlder bed at Washington
forms the basal portion of the formation in its type locality. One dif¬
ference alone appears : in the type locality the bowlder bed generally
characterizes the lower levels; in the Mississippi embayment the Colum¬
bia gravel beds commonly characterize high altitudes or midheights.
This difference goes with a related difference in the constitution of
the formation in the type locality the bowlder bed is the base of the
formation as exposed above tide level; in the Mississippi embayment a
heavy mass of clays underlying a part of the gravel is exposed above
tide level.

Most conspicuous and important of the four phases of the Columbia
deposits in the Mississippi embayment, by reason both of extent and
thickness, is the Port Hudson. It is a vast bed of blue, black, gray, or
brown laminated clay, commonly clean, though sometimes parted with
sand, silt, or fine gravel, and often charged with calcareous or ferrugi¬
nous nodules. This tenacious clay floors the entire flood plain of the
Mississippi from the mouth of the Ohio well toward the Gulf shore,
sometimes beneath a veneer of modern alluvium; and the main and
most of the minor channels of the great river, and the principal tribu¬
taries and distributaries as well, are carved within it. It is preemi¬
nently a lowlevel deposit, seldom rising far above the modern base-
level, and many of the corn, cotton, cane, and rice fields of the vast
region represent it. These Port Hudson soils are most fertile when
intermixed with modern alluvial sands; when not so intermixed the
deposit gives rise to a tenacious and heavy soil which, when charged
with small ferruginous or calcareo-ferruginous nodules, is colloquially
known as u buckshot lands.” This phase of the formation lines the
broad ancient valley of the Mississippi from Cairo to the Gulf. It is

M'GEE.]

CONDITION OF DEPOSITION OF THE COLUMBIA.

401

well displayed in tlie area lifted by the New Madrid earthquake — an
area complementary to and hard by the sunken tract of Eeelfoot Lake,
now forming Lake County, Tennessee. Its thickness reaches 400 feet
at Greenville and over GOO feet at New Orleans, and it rests unconform-
ably upon the Lafayette and all older deposits of the region.

The physical relations of the four phases of the Columbia formation
as developed about the mouth of the great river have been set forth;
the genetic relations are simple in the general view, though complex in
certain details. Disregarding the details, they may be thus stated:
With the initiation of the Columbia submergence, which was greater
toward the interior than along the coast, the great river gradually silted
up its lower valley, the sedimentation lagging somewhat behind the
sinking so that after the first droppings the interior sediments were fine
and homogeneous, the shore sediments coarser and heterogeneous ; this
continued until the embayment became wide and deposition became pre¬
dominantly lateral and only subordinately central — the lateral materials,
partly river-borne, partly wave-washed, remaining coarse, the central
materials finer. When the waters spread over the peneplain lying east of
the old embayment proper, the combined wave work and river work
produced a basal sheet of coarse deposits, which, as the sinking con¬
tinued, became finer, and at the greatest submergence, as during the
earlier stages, there came from the north immense quantities of rock
flour, the grist of the glacial mill, to form the loess or to combine with
local debris and form the brown loam. The main current of the muddy
stream from the north followed the line of the old erosion rampart, which
rose nearly, sometimes quite, to the water level, and there the swollen
Mississippi built, as it lias done during other stages of its existence, a
broad natural levee by which the rampart was strengthened. Then the
northern floods diminished and the land lifted, but for a long time the
lowland remained submerged, and sedimentation progressed in the em¬
bayment until it was filled to baselevel. So the first deposits are the
sub-local gravels and sands (chiefly derived from the Lafayette forma¬
tion) displayed by borings at New Orleans, at Greenville, and beneath the
Calcasieu prairie; the next deposits are found in the lower part of the
Port Hudson, and consist of the sediments of the great river and its lat¬
eral tributaries, together with some glacier-ground debris from the
north; the mid-period deposits are the sub-local gravels mantling the
peneplain east of the embayment proper and stretching into the mar¬
ginal portion of the Port Hudson, formed mainly by the wash of waves
and streams upon the Lafayette remnants, but mixed with some north¬
ern pebbles, much northern rock-flour; the next deposit is the vast
mantle of brown loam, consisting partly of local and partly of sub-local
material, but always containing an important and usually predominant
element of glacier-ground sediment, and where the glacier-ground ma¬
terials were not mixed with those from local sources the deposit is loess ;
but meantime, and long after as well, far -traveled and fine rock matter
was dropped in the deep embayment.

12 GrEOL - 26

402

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Correlated genetically with the typical formation, the gravel bed at
the base of the Port Hudson represents the beginning of Columbia
deposition in the ancient valley, just as the bowlder bed in Washington
represents the beginning of Columbia deposition in the Potomac
estuary; the bed of gravel and sand (Salford’s Orange Sand) at the
base of the brown loam represents the beginning of deposition on the
peneplain, but along the eastern rampart, at least, it was always washed
a little way into the embayment, so that today it appears between the
high-lying brown loam and the low-lying fine clays; the brown loam
represents the greater part of the peneplain deposition ; the loess repre¬
sents peneplain deposition of exclusively glacier- ground materials, ap¬
parently in the form of broad natural levees during the culmination of
the submergence ; the Port Hudson rejiresents deposition in the ancient
valley from the beginning of the submergence up to the final retreat of
the waters; and, just as on the Atlantic coast, the drowning of the
land itself represents a submergence beginning about or shortly after
the first ice invasion, culminating a little after the culmination of this
invasion, and continuing some time after the retreat of the ice.

Correlating the several phases or members of the Columbia forma¬
tion developed in the Mississippi embayment with the phases developed
in the type locality, certain resemblances and certain differences appear :
Most conspicuous among the resemblances is the similarity between the
brick clay or loam of the type locality and the brown loam of the em¬
bayment. Only less conspicuous is the similar gradation of the loam
into a coarse basal bed. A third notable resemblance is found in the
character of the basal bed itself, which in both areas consists of local
and sub-local materials, but is coarser in the typical area than in the
embayment. The most conspicuous difference is found in the vast sheet
of Port Hudson clay, which is, so far as known, without exact repre¬
sentative in the District of Columbia, though it is possible that this
deposit may yet be found by borings in the submerged estuaries of the
Atlantic slope, while it may be represented in a greater or less part by
the silty low-level phase in the typical area. Another noteworthy dif¬
ference is found in the important element of rock flour forming the loess
and brown loam of the embayment, which is but feebly represented in
the calcareous element of the loam on the Susquehanna and Delaware
Rivers.

Correlating the phases or members of the formation in each of the
natural districts from the Potomac to the Mississippi, all are found defi¬
nitely connected by a complete chain of homology. In the type locality
there is an estuarine or fluviat.ile deposit lining the comparatively deep
canals cutting the coastal lowland, and a thin and inconspicuous interflu¬
vial deposit between. As the estuarine canals diminish in depth south¬
ward the fluvial phase persists, though diminishing in absolute and rela¬
tive volume, while the lower divides are more thickly veneered with the
interfluvial phase. In the third great district the estuarine canals fail

M'GEE.]

CORRELATION OF THE COLUMBIA DEPOSITS.

403

and the fluvial phase becomes feeble, while the interfluvial phase
stretches over the lowland in a vast mantle. In the next district the
fluvial phase again develops to a degree even more conspicuous than
in the type area, and the interfluvial phase continues but withdraws
nearly to the present coast line. In the fifth and most noteworthy of
the natural districts of the formation the two phases can, perhaps, be
discriminated only in arbitrary fashion, yet the series as a whole
grades through the Biloxi sands and Pontchartrain clays into the low-
lying Port Hudson, which is unquestionably estuarine or fluvial, and
into a portion at least of the brown loam with its basal gravel bed,
which are evidently wave-formed and thus interfluvial. So in tracing
the deposits from district to district the principal phases are susceptible
of direct correlation ; and, moreover, the deposits are stratigraphically
continuous, as proved by actual presence, through the successive river
valleys and over the successive divides all the way from the Potomac
to the Mississippi.

Correlating the continental oscillations represented by the different
phases of the formation in the several districts, it is found that all rep¬
resent movements similar in kind though varying in degree. In the
type locality the deposits represent a depression of the land, contempo¬
raneous with the first invasion of Pleistocene ice, reaching 300 feet or
more in the North and diminishing to about 150 feet on the Potomac
River; in the next district they represent submergence progressively
diminishing to 50 feet or less about the Hatteras axis — an axis of inter¬
ruption or change in epeirogenic movement during every geologic period
since the Cretaceous; and in both districts the fluvial deposits record a
colder climate than the present and decided flooding of the rivers,
diminishing from north to south. In the third district the deposits rep¬
resent submergence increasing to 000 feet or more and stretching far
inland, and there are indications of enfeebled river work. In the dis¬
trict characterized by “second bottoms,” lying between the Snwanee
and the Pascagoula, the deposits represent slight submergence along
the coast, increasing inland to such an extent that the rivers were
clogged — they tell of that northward tilting of the land which is re¬
corded even more decisively by the great incursion of the Columbia
shores nearly to the headwaters of the Savannah, and by the great rise of
the Columbia sediments in the embayment of the Mississippi near the
deflection of the Tennessee. In the embayment district the deposits rep¬
represent a submergence of 100 feet or less in the south, increasing to
600 feet or more under the thirty-fifth parallel, and then diminishing
gradually northward, together with materially increased discharge,
particularly of fine glacial materials, through the great river. So the
formation in its various parts gives consistent records of the movement
of land and sea.

Correlating the genetic conditions of the deposits in the different
phases and several districts, it appears that the principal conditions are

404

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

two, of which one was coincident throughout while the other varied
locally. The primary genetic condition was submergence with concom¬
itant wave work and dropping of sediments, and this was everywhere
alike. The subordinate genetic condition grew out of the local work of
the rivers, and this varied from river to river with the volume, with the
changes in regimen growing out of the warping of the continent, and
with the influence of northern ice upon some of the rivers; yet the local
records are consistent, not only among each other but with the general
record and with the records read from other phenomena in the interior of
the continent. So the various parts of the formation may be correlated
by liomogeny as well as by intergrading of phases and by stratigraphic
continuity.1

There is a sixth natural district of the Columbia formation lying be¬
yond the Mississippi embayment, which is in a general way bounded on
the east by Sabine River, on the southwest by the Rio Grande, and on
the northwest by a line midway between the fall line and the coast. In
the type district the Columbia formation comprises well defined fluvial
and interfluvial phases and an ill defined low level phase, and is more¬
over commonly separable into distinct upper and lower members; in the
districts extending thence to the Mississippi the typical phases and
members may be traced with greater or less continuity; in the lower
Mississippi district the entire formation is predominantly fluvial, but it
is separated into four members, of which the first two correspond to the
fine upper and the third to the coarse lower member of the type area,
while the fourth, which is finest and lowest of all, is not represented
above tide level in the type area ; and in the southwestern district the
formation is substantially represented by a single deposit corresponding
to that lowest member of the lower Mississippi district which is not rep¬
resented within reach of observation in the type district; i. e., aside from
a relatively unimportant development, the Columbia formation of Texas
is essentially an extension of the Port Hudson clays of Louisiana.

In central and southwestern Louisiana the Columbia formation is a
vast sheet of laminated clays, commonly several hundred feet in thick¬
ness, which toward Atehafalaya Bayon are frequently blue or bluish
gray and charged with carbonate of lime, often segregated in nodular
form, while farther westward they become brownish or reddish in color,
noncalcareous in composition, and arenaceous in texture; i. e., the portion
of the deposit brought down chiefly by the great river contains an im¬
portant element of fine rock flour, while the portion supplied by Red
River contains a predominant element of red mud and sand derived from
the southwestern red beds. Moreover, there is a fairly constant differ¬
ence between the upper and lower portions of the deposit, the lower
strata being coarser and the upper finer, while the uppermost materials

1 Certain members and phases of the Columbia formation, particularly in the Mississippi embayment,
have been referred to the Tertiary upon various grounds, and there may be reason for regarding the
•coarse basal bed as Neocene rather than Pleistocene; but the series is identical in the various dis¬
tricts, and division in one part will involve division throughout.

M'GEB.]

THE COLUMBIA FORMATION IN TEXAS.

405

are finest of all, particularly within the many shallow interstream
basins circumscribed by levee-flanked bayous. Toward and beyond the
Sabine these conditions slowly change: In the first place the element
of northern rock flour diminishes, and the calcareous nodules frequently
fail; then the Red River sands diminish, and the materials become more
tenacious ; meantime an element of black mud, such as is carried down
by the rivers flowing over the Cretaceous chalks of Texas, appears, and
the deposit becomes the black tenacious clay characteristic of south¬
eastern Texas. This aspect is maintained for 100 miles west of the Sa¬
bine, when the clay again becomes calcareous, and the element of lime
increases until, about the mouth of San Antonio River, the texture and
even the surface configuration are largely determined thereby. Here the
clays are black, weathering drab, streaked with light gray and white, suffi¬
ciently tenacious not only to stand long in natural or artificial faces
but to form the most strongly accented topography of the western Gulf
coast. Corpus Christi Bay is semi-circled by a 40- foot scarp of this clay,
which is sometimes carved into precipitous cliffs, and the city of Corpus
Christi is built on steep-sloped bluffs forming part of the same scarp ;
yet within a few hundred yards of the scarp and of the ravines by which
the Columbia plain is partially invaded, the surface is a flat, monotonous,
ill drained expanse diversified only by curious natural crevices and nar¬
row pits widening downward in such manner as to indicate subterranean
drainage and solution combined, and to suggest the origin of the puz¬
zling “hog wallow” lands of the Cretaceous “black prairies” of Texas,
Arkansas, and Louisiana. Still farther southwestward the calcareous
material again diminishes in quantity, and the deposit contains a larger
element of silt and sand contributed by the Rio Grande and its neigh¬
bors.

In geographic distribution (as ascertained chiefly by Hill) the pre¬
dominant phase of the formation in this district skirts the Gulf coast in
a zone 75 to 125 miles wide; the town of Sabine approximately marks
its inland extension; the city of Houston is well within it; the town of
Beeville approximately, and the city of San Diego exactly, marks its
margin ; while still farther southwestward the feather edge of the forma¬
tion extends farther inland, and doubtless grades into the light buff
loess-like fossiliferous loam of the lower Rio Grande. In hypsographic
distribution the formation extends from tide level to altitudes of 00 feet
at Houston (which is not far from the middle of the zone) to about 00
feet at Sabine, 110 feet at Rosenberg, 185 feet at Victoria, about 200
feet at Beeville, and over 300 feet at San Diego. In addition to the
principal body of the formation, corresponding approximately with the
Port Hudson of the lower Mississippi region, there are in this district
narrow ribbons of “second bottom” loam with basal gravels running up
most of the rivers from 50 to 100, or even 200 miles beyond the inland
margin of the clays. Thus, on Red River the well known red-tinted
terrace from which the waterway received its name extends half way

406

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

from the mouth to the mountains, a score or more miles above Denison
and 725 feet above tide 5 on Trinity River corresponding terraces extend
above Dallas, reaching 450 feet in altitude; on the Brazos River they
are well developed at Waco, 425 feet above tide; on the Colorado similar
terraces form the finest agricultural lands about Austin, rising 450 feet
above the Gulf; at San Antonio there are similar but less extensive
terraces skirting the San Antonio River, reaching 650 feet in altitude;
and the lesser waterways are similarly skirted by u second bottoms” of
loam grading into sub-local gravel. These river-haunting ribbons are
analogous to those of the Alabama rivers, and they are equally signifi¬
cant as records of the attitude of a considerable part of the continent
during the wide-spread Columbia submergence.

O11 generalizing this distribution, certain significant relations appear:
In the first place, the zone is widest in the northeast, where the south¬
western district passes into that of the lower Mississippi, and it is also
lowest along this line; farther southwestward it gradually contracts
in width and increases in height about to the Brazos; and still farther
southwestward it again expands in width, and meantime continues to
increase in altitude so far as the formation lias been discriminated,
perhaps 75 miles from the Rio Grande. This inequality in distribu¬
tion tells of continent movements of the geologic past and of the geo¬
logic present, of the attitude and oscillations of the continent during the
Columbia period, and also of the modern movement revealed in the keys
and sounds of the present coast. The records overlap in part, and the
characters of the one measurably obscure those of the other, yet both
may be partially interpreted. The great inland extension of the littoral
clays, and of the u second bottom” ribbons as well, in the northeast,
corresponds with the inland extension of the formation in and beyond
the Mississippi lowlands, and indicates that during the Columbia period
the land not only stood low but tilted northward ; the increase in altitude
and partial increase in width of the low-level phase of the formation
southwestward is consistent with the testimony of the keys and sounds,
and indicates that the continent depression following the post-Colum¬
bia high-level is less decided toward the international boundary than
toward the Louisiana line, and, indeed, progressively increases from
near the Rio Grande to the delta of the great river.

In the second place, the distribution, viewed in connection with
the waterways and the autogenetic sculpture of the southwestern dis¬
trict of the coastal plain, gives indication of the climatal conditions
attending the Columbia submergence. Thus, everywhere southwest of
the Guadalupe, the waterways traversing the coast prairies are few,
small, and simple, while immediately inland from the coast prairie or
Columbia belt they bifurcate again and again, and quickly multiply in
number and in depth, albeit occupied to-day by only trifling and tempo¬
rary threads of water, and still farther inland they terminate within
50 or 100 miles, and the drainage again becomes scant and simple.

M OEE.]

ANALOGY BETWEEN COLUMBIA AND LAFAYETTE.

407

Now, this multiplication of waterways tells of heavy precipitation
along the Columbia coast and consequent rapid development of the
stream-carved channels in the friable Lafayette sands ; and their union or
termination coastward indicates relative aridity in the same zone when
the land subsequently rose and coast precipitation was transferred to a
more obdurate terrane. The testimony of land sculpture thus coincides
with that of the deposits and also with that of the starveling remnants
of the coast flora now left far inland.

The greatly developed and differentiated Columbia formation of the
lower Mississippi district is correlated with that of the type district by
stratigraphic continuity as well as by homogeny ; and the same corre¬
lation is extended into the southwestern district by direct stratigraphic
continuity, by physiographic identity, and by homogeny even closer
than that connecting any other two districts of the coastal plain. So,
despite the simplicity of the record found in the deposit as developed
in the southwest, the several districts may be combined, and the same
Pleistocene formation, everywhere telling of similar episodes in con¬
tinent growth, may be extended not only from the Hudson to the Mis¬
sissippi but on to the Eio Grande.

The Columbia formation is significant in several ways in its bearing
on the study of the Lafayette formation. In the first place, the two
formations lie in physical contact. In the second place, the later forma¬
tion is in part derived from the earlier, so that it is sometimes difficult
if not impossible to discriminate them ; and even when they are dis¬
criminate there is often a passage bed, made up of the earlier materials
rearranged by the later agencies, which is differently classed by differ¬
ent geologists. Again, the unconformity between the formations can
be interpreted only after a study of both, and since this unconformity is
the erosion record of the Lafayette, it must be interpreted in order that
the original condition of the earlier formation may be ascertained.
Finally, and most important of all, the Columbia formation well illus¬
trates the relative activity of geologic process about the great river
and ou the eastern Gulf and Atlantic slopes respectively, and thus
gives a conception concerning general continental conditions which
must serve as a basis for study, not alone of the Lafayette, but of all
the lowland formations. The volume and diversity of the Columbia for-
matiou culminates in the Mississippi embayment; in like manner, the
volume and diversity of the Lafayette formation culminates in the Mis¬
sissippi embayment, and in a degree which would appear surprising, if
not incredible, were not the earlier record corroborated in every detail
by the later; so, too, the great pre-Lafayette formation which Hilgard
called Grand Gulf culminates in volume and importance in the Missis¬
sippi embayment in a manner which would surely not be appreciated
were it not for later records; and still farther back in geologic time
the predominance of embayment deposition may be read in coincident
terms.

408

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

THE GRAND GULF FORMATION.

Unconformably above the Lafayette formation throughout much of
its extent lies the Columbia formation; unconformably below in the
central Gulf region lies the Grand Gulf formation of Hilgard.

The prevailing materials of the Grand Gulf formation are peculiar,
semi-indurated and more or less sandy clays or mudstones, sometimes defl
nitely bedded with occasional indurated ledges, again massive, and else¬
where consisting of alternating harder and softer layers, each some feet
or yards in thickness. In certain cases the sand, which is nearly always
sharp, predominates, and the lithifaction is so complete that the rock be¬
comes quartzitic, as in certain layers at the type locality — Grand Gulf,
Mississippi. Elsewhere clayey materials prevail nearly or quite to the
exclusion of the sand, as in the exposures on Leaf River, west of Hatties¬
burg, Mississippi. The color is generally gray, ranging from whitish or
yellowish to blue and green, more rarely brown, and sometimes nearly
black. The texture is commonly uniform throughout considerable thick¬
nesses. The bedding planes are irregular and sometimes stylolitic, and
the mass is usually so dense and tenacious as to simulate veritable stone
in large masses and in cliffs, though the behavior in hand specimens and
under the hammer is rather that of indurated clay or mud. The various
features of structure, texture, color, etc., are combined in such manner
as to give a facies so distinctive, that, despite the dearth of fossils, the
formation is in general easily identified wherever seen.

The best known portion of the Grand Gulf terrane is a triangular
area overlooking the Mississippi from near the mouth of Big Black
River to the southwestern corner of Mississippi and narrowing thence
eastward to about the confluence of the Alabama and Tombigbee rivers,
where, so far as at present known, the formation either feathers out or
passes into deposits of distinctive character. Throughout this area the
formation is commonly overlain by the Lafayette, save where the latter
formation has been trenched, or removed from larger areas, by erosion;
but since the Lafayette, here as elsewhere, reflects with greater or less
fidelity the characters of the subterrane, and is accordingly exception¬
ally obdurate, Grand Gulf exposures are rare. Widely separated ex¬
posures are, however, sufficiently numerous to indicate that the Grand
Gulf surface beneath the Lafayette mantle is nearly or quite as rugose
as the strongly undulating peneplain of to-day, and thus that this
formation was deeply carved by streams before the next succeeding
invasion of the Gulf waters. The exposures indicate, too, that the
formation reaches its greatest northing along the Big Black rather than
the Mississippi, since it extends nearly to the latitude of Jackson on
the eastern side of the former stream.

The thickness of the formation has not been measured and can only
be estimated roughly from the width of outcrop and the dip of strata.
Assuming to be continuous the observed dips of about 10 feet per

M'QEE.]

THE GRAND GULF FORMATION.

409

mile through the 75 miles of strata exposed along the Mississippi, the
thickness might he put at 750 feet in this latitude; but unquestionably
the deposit thins materially toward the sea.

The Grand Gulf formation attains a considerable development west
of the Mississippi in Louisiana and perhaps in Texas, as shown by
Hopkins and Johnson, but beyond the great river the land lies low,
the exposures are less satisfactory than in the east, both the Lafayette
and the Columbia mantles are thicker, and the data are so incomplete
and indefinite that little can be said concerning this part of the terrane.

East of the Mississippi the Grand Gulf deposits appear to rest uncon-
formably on the next older member of the coastal plain series, the
Vicksburg limestone; for, as shown by Johnson,* 1 not only is the dip of
the later formation materially less than that of the earlier, but in the
only contact thus far known (Brown’s Bend in Chickasawhay River,
3 miles southeast of Waynesboro, Mississippi) the strata of the respec¬
tive formations are discordant quite to the line of contact. The same
section displays well the great unconformity between the Grand Gulf
and the Lafayette formations.

The Grand Gulf is practically unfossiliferous; true, according to
Hilgard, leaves, leaf impressions, and stumps and logs of dicotyledonous
trees occur within it,2 while Johnson 3 has found not only leaf impres¬
sions but fragmentary shells of JJnio; yet the fossils are insufficient to
determine the'place of the formation in the biotic scale.

In southeastern Mississippi, particularly along the Pascagoula River,
Johnson has brought to light a series of deposits resembling somewhat
in material the typical Grand Gulf formation, though the bedding is
more definite, and alternating layers of sand and clay partially replace
the prevailing mudstones. The series appears to correspond in strati¬
graphic position either with the upper part or with the whole of the
Grand Gulf, and carries a moderately abundant fauna of rather recent
(apparently late Neocene) aspect, which has not yet been studied in
detail. Pending the determination of precise relations, Johnson has
designated this series of deposits the Pascagoula formation.

Still farther eastward the deposits characteristic of the Pascagoula
basin disappear, but whether by feathering out or by gradual transi¬
tion has not been ascertained; and in southeastern Alabama and the
panhandle of Florida white marly limestones, with associated clayey
and shaly beds, supervene in corresponding relation to the Lafayette
sand beds and the Eocene limestones; but it is not yet possible to cor¬
relate the marly limestones (which are commonly classed as Miocene,
though the fauna exhibits, as a whole, decided Pliocene characteristics)
with the Mississippi mudstones.

In brief, the Grand Gulf formation is known to be one of the most
important elements in the stratigraphy of the coastal plain within and

1 Am. Jour. Sci., 3d series, vol. 38, 1889, pp. 213-216.

1 Geology and Agriculture of Mississippi, 1860, p. 153.

3 Am. Jour. Sci.. vol. 38, 1889, p. 213

4L0

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

about tlie Mississippi embayment. Although its precise relations have
not yet been definitely ascertained, it is certain that the formation is a
vast delta-shaped deposit many hundred feet in thickness, now more
than 100 miles in maximum width (including the subsurface portion)
and originally much wider, and several hundred miles in lateral extent;
certainly the locus of greatest development is near the line of the great
river, and the deposits thin out laterally; certainly the materials are
coarsest in the central part of the terrane and progressively finer to¬
ward the east if not toward the west; certainly the formation is homo¬
geneous and apparently conformable throughout, and is demarked from
contiguous formations by great unconformities; certainly the physical
relations and mechanical condition of the deposit indicates that the ma¬
terials were borne into an estuary or bay chiefly by the Mississippi
River, and that they were distributed by the action of waves and cur¬
rents; and certainly the deposit represents a well defined and im¬
portant epoch in the physical history of the southern United States. It
is practically certain, too, that the formation once extended so much
farther northward within the Mississippi embayment as to sheet and
long protect from erosion the limestone peneplain of middle Mississippi
and perhaps even the Lignitic hill land; it is practically certain, more¬
over, that the original locus of maximum deposition lay somewhat east
of the present line of the Mississippi, suggesting that the progenitor of
Big Black River (then fed by the Tennessee and Cumberland drainage)
contributed much of its material; and, finally, it is practically certain
that this deltaform sheet of obdurate mudstones deflected the great
river as the land lifted after the Grand Gulf drowning, and ultimately
aided in deflecting the Tennessee-Cuinberland drainage, and in this way
gave origin to the rugose peneplain constituting eastern Mississippi.

The present indications are that the formation as a whole is the ana¬
logue of the Columbia and the Lafayette, and that it grades toward the
east into the fossiliferous arenaceous clays of the Pascagoula and
thence into the Neocene calcareous deposits of the Chattahoochee,
perhaps forming the Chattahoochee limestone of Langdon1; and that it
is thus connected with the thin, calcareous and glauconitic formation
commonly assigned to the Miocene fringing the Atlantic coast from
Florida to New Jersey ; but this connection has not yet been established.
Present indications are, also, that the formation extends westward to
or a little way beyond the Sabine and then feathers out, the Fayette
sands sometimes correlated with it more probably representing the
Lafayette.

THE CHESAPEAKE FORMATION.

Certain of the fossiliferous deposits of the middle Atlantic slope com¬
monly assigned to the Miocene in biotic taxonomy have recently been

1 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., vol. 2, 1890, p. 605.

MrGEE.] CHARACTERS OF THE CHESAPEAKE FORMATION. 411

differentiated on physical grounds and designated the Chesapeake for¬
mation by Barton.1 2 He describes the formation as follows:

This formation occupies a belt comprising nearly the entire width of the coastal
plain region in Virginia and a wide area in southeastern Maryland. All the water
courses of the region cut more or less deeply into the formation, and it frequently
constitutes high bluffs along the larger streams. In Maryland it lies east of the Po¬
tomac River, and on the “western shore” its northern termination is in a series of
outliers midway on a line connecting Washington and Annapolis. Its northern limit
on the “eastern shore” is * * * not yet determined.

The formation is diverse in composition, consisting of sands, clays, marls, diato-
maceous beds, and shell fragments, in all several hundred feet in thickness. The
lower beds consist mainly of dark colored clays and sands, with occasional local in¬
clusions of blue marl. The upper beds are coarser grained, and consist chiefly of
white beach sands containing shells and deposits of shell fragments, and occasional
argillaceous members. These three series intergrade in zones, which vary some¬
what in stratigraphic position and vertical extent, and all the members rapidly
thicken seaward, apparently reaching a thickness of nearly 1,000 feet at Fort Monroe.

For the greater part of its area, the clays of the Chesapeake formation lie directly
on the eroded surface of the Pamunkey greensands. Westward at some points it
overlaps for short distances on the Potomac formation and crystalline rocks. On
the James River below City Point the medial portion of the formation lies on
Pamunkey greensands, indicating an island or local shore bluff iu the early Chesa¬
peake seas. Elsewhere the stratigraphic position of the base of the formation
appears to be constant, and the basal plane is a smooth surface inclined eastward
very uniformly at the rate of about 10 feet to the mile.

In the Washington section the base of the Chesapeake formation locally cuts
across the thin edges of the Pamunkey and Severn formations, and lies directly on
the Potomac formation. At Good Hope hill, in this region, occur the Eocene fossils
mentioned by McGee,3 but they are found to be casts mixed with casts of Cretaceous
species, both imbedded in sands containing impressions of Miocene mollusca. This
occurrence of pebbles, in part consisting of fossil casts, is quite common at the base
of the Chesapeake formation, notably at Herring Bay and on the Pamunkey River.
In Maryland, especially near Nottingham, and on Pope Creek, the base of the
formation consists locally of a thin, hard, silicified stratum filled with Miocene
molluscan impressions.

The Chesapeake formation is unconformably overlain by the Lafayette
deposits, and along the shores of Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac
River, as well as the lower divide, by the Columbia formation.

In the southern Atlantic slope Dali has defined, partly on paleonto-
logic and partly on stratigraphic grounds, a coincident series of deposits
containing an early Neocene fauna changing in facies from the lower
to the upper portion in such manner as to suggest climatal change; the
faunal change agreeing in general with that already recognized by
Heilprin and made the basis of a separation of the Atlantic coast Mio¬
cene into a “Marylandian” and “Virginian ” series. Darton, however,
finds it inexpedient to divide the formation on this basis, and regards
it as a physical unit.

In brief, the Chesapeake formation is a series of marine sediments,
glauconitic in the north, calcareous in the south, and apparently con-

1 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am. vol. 2, 1890, pp. 431-451.

2 Three formations of the Middle Atlantic Slope: Am. Jour. Sci., 3d ser., vol. 35, p. 136.

412

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

tinuous, at least from Delaware to Virginia, resting unconformably on
the Eocene formations, and overlain unconformably at least by the
Columbia and Lafayette formations — a series representing a definite
episode in the physical history of the continent, and standing toward
the Grand Gulf formation of the embayment just as the Atlantic dis¬
tricts of the Columbia stand toward the embayment district of that
formation; but definite connection has not yet been established, and
the series may be found interrupted over the Hatteras axis, somewhere
about the Chattahoochee River, or possibly elsewhere.

THE VICKSBURG-JACKSON LIMESTONE.

The lower portion of the rampart overlooking the Mississippi flood
plain, between the Chickasaw bluifs in the north and the Choctaw bluffs
in the south, represents a broad calcareous terrane which, during the
Neocene erosion periods, yielded more readily to degradation than the
Lignitic and Grand Gulf formations. In Mississippi the terrane has
been divided, its principal elements being the Vicksburg limestone and
Jackson limestone of Hilgard,1 together with the more restricted Red
Bluff and Salt Mountain calcareous deposits. The same terrane has
been traced eastward, across Mississippi by Hilgard, and across Ala¬
bama by Tuomey, Smith, Johnson, and others, and for some distance
into Georgia; but according to most students the series is essentially
a unit, being indivisible either on physical or biotic grounds throughout
nearly or cpiite all of its extent in Alabama and Georgia.2

In western Mississippi the prevailing rocks of the terrane are regularly
bedded argillaceous limestones, calcareous silty shales, and beds of
calcareous clay, all frequently fossiliferous ; in central Mississippi the
argillaceous element is much less conspicuous, and the prevailing de¬
posits are chalky or slightly argillaceous limestones with slialy part¬
ings and intercalated beds of calcareous shale. Still farther eastward
the calcareous element becomes more decidedly predominant until in
central and eastern Alabama almost the entire mass of the formation
consists of limestone, sometimes nearly pure, though commonly chalky,
including only occasional slialy layers. The abundant fauna by which
the formation is characterized is distinctively Eocene.

On the Mississippi the terrane extends beneath the Columbia and La¬
fayette deposits from the Tennessee line to about the mouth of the Big
Black, or fully 250 miles; but by reason of the facility with which its
materials have yielded to erosion, and by reason of the heavy mantling
beneath newer deposits, outcrops are rare, and neither the precise limits
nor the continuity of the formation have been established by direct ob¬
servation. The thickness of the mass can be only roughly estimated.
The observed dips average 20 to 30 feet per mile, which would give for
the entire deposit a thickness of several thousand feet; but it is probable

1 Geology and Agriculture of Mississippi, 1860, pp. 128-147.

* Bulletin 43, U. S. Geological Survey, 1887, pp. 15, 16.

M GEE.]

THE VICKSBURG-JACKSON CALCAREOUS DEPOSITS. 413

that this formation (like all formations in some degree) comprises in
cross section a series of imbricated lenses so disposed that the aggregate
thickness of the several lenses far exceeds the actual thickness of the
formation at any point. The maximum thickness may accordingly fall
short of a thousand feet, though recent developments indicate that it
materially exceeds the 212 feet estimated by Hilgard in 1871. 1 Traced
eastward the terrane rapidly contracts to less than 50 miles at the Ala¬
bama line, while the thickness diminishes (probably) to between 300 and
400 feet. In eastern Alabama and Georgia the thickness is still further
reduced (to 280 feet on the Chattahoochee River according to Langdon),2
but by reason of the flatter attitude of the coastal plain strata generally
in this longitude, the terrane maintains its width or even expands.

West of the Mississippi there are many exposures of the same cal¬
careous series, and near the river (e. g., in the southern portion of Crow¬
ley Ridge) the argillaceous element is even more pronounced than in
the Mississippi rampart; but the formation has not been definitely de¬
limited either structurally or geographically.

The structural relations of the deposits east of the Mississippi are
fairly well known. As already indicated, the series is separated from
the Grand Gulf by discordance in dip, by dissimilarity in material, and
by erosion uncomformity; it is separated from the subjacent deposits in
Mississippi and Alabama by the same discordance in dip, by complete
(though probably gradual) change in the character of the sediments,
and by a faunal break indicating, even more decisively than does the
change in sediments, a revolution in the physical conditions of genesis.

Briefly interpreted, this calcareous series records an eon of continent
growth during which the land stood low and the seas ran high, although
the extent of the tract thus conditioned is not yet definitely known.
The Mississippi flowed near its present course, for there the precipitates
are abundantly mixed with mechanical detritus; yet the detritus enter¬
ing into the composition of the rocks is so fine, so uniform, so widely dis¬
tributed, as to indicate either that the waters drowned a much larger
area than the present embayment or (more probably) that the land tilted
northward as it sank until the rivers ran sluggishly, corraded but feebly,
and dropped the weightier part of their burden in their upper courses.

THE CLAIBORNE-MliRIDIAN.

Beneath the conspicuous calcareous member of the Mississippi em¬
bayment there lies a series of heteromorphic deposits, calcareous above
(the Calcareous Claiborne of Hilgard), siliceous below (including the
Siliceous Claiborne and Buhrstone of Hilgard). In a general way this
series corresponds with the middle Eocene of Alabama, as defined by
Smith' and Johnson.3 The thickness assigned to the series in Mississippi

Proceedings Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., vol. 20, 1872,
p. 222, map.

2 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., vol. 2, 1890, p. 605.

3 Bulletin 43, U. S. Geol. Survey, 1891, p. 18.

414

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

by Hilgard is 210 feet;1 but in western Alabama Smith and .Johnson
found the probably coincident series no less than 440 feet thick, while
on the Alabama-Georgia line Langdon records a thickness of 250 feet.2

The terrane is a crescentic zone, approaching the Mississippi in south¬
western Tennessee and northwestern Mississippi, curving thence south¬
eastward across Mississippi and east- southeastward across Alabama,
with a width of from 10 to 50 miles. It is doubtfully recognized still far¬
ther eastward in Georgia; and it is known to have a considerable de¬
velopment in Arkansas and northwestern Louisiana, though its limits
there are not clearly defined.

The upper portion of the series comprises argillaceous marls, some¬
times chalky and sometimes siliceous, and now and then distinctly
glauconitic. Below, the marls appear to pass into argillaceous and
sometimes siliceous mudstones simulating in some degree the predomi¬
nant material of the Grand Gulf, though commonly more definitely
bedded and finely laminated. The basal portion of the series comprises
the most distinctive rockmass of the Mississippi embayment, i. e., the
“bnhrstone,” first of the pioneer squatter who ground his grain in
primitive fashion, then of the more opulent planter, and finally of the
geologist. The rock is as characteristic and distinctive as limestone,
sandstone, shale, or marble; but by reason of its confinement to a com¬
paratively restricted region it lias never received the coordinate appella¬
tion it deserves ; and unfortunately the designation of the vernacular is a
misnomer, first in that it fails to express the rock character, and second,
in that it connotes a diverse material — the French “buhrstone” of
commerce, derived from a probably newer siliceous formation of the
Paris Basin. This basal member of the series is typically displayed in
the vicinity of Meridian ; from these exposures it seems appropriate to
designate the deposit the Meridian formation, or, if the general though
unsatisfactory lithologic term be retained, the Meridian buhrstone. Here
it comprises hard siliceous ledges, with intercalated beds of imperfectly
indurated siliceous clay or marl, the mass displaying moderately regu¬
lar bedding; yet, despite a high degree of uniformity in composition
and in structure, there is a wide diversity in texture, owing to the vari¬
able degree of lithifaction. There is commonly a rude nodulation or
segregation of the materials in plates and lenses, variously disposed in
attitude; the nodules, plates, and lenses are generally hard, brittle, re¬
fractory under the hammer, clinking sharply, and breaking with con¬
ch oidal or splinterly fracture; while the intervening mass is less per¬
fectly lithified, and sometimes indeed quite friable. This differentia¬
tion within the rockmass varies widely in magnitude; sometimes the
nodules (which are seldom if ever sharply defined) are but an inch
or less in diameter, the plates and lenses but hand specimens ; again
the harder segregations are measurable in feet or yards, the nodules
running into lenses, the lenses expanding into ledges; and elsewhere the

2 Proc. Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., vol. 20, 1872. p. 222, map.

3 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., vol. 2, 1890, p. 605.

MrGEE.]

THE MERIDIAN FORMATION AND THE CLAIBORNE. 415

exceptionally obdurate phase forms whole outcrops, rods or furlongs in
extent, affecting many strata, determining the drainage, and forming
hills; yet the body of the deposit remains unchanged — it is a fine, mealy
aggregation of angular siliceous particles, with a subordinate argillaceous
element sometimes disseminated and again gathered into sheets. The
appearance of the irregular segregation and lithifaction suggests that
the harder spots or phases have undergone exceptional solidification,
determined by weathering and infiltration during the eons throughout
which the formation has lain exposed to sun, storm, and air.

The sediments extending from the summit of the calcareous Clai¬
borne to the base of the Meridian buhrstone are not known to be defi¬
nitely delimited either above or below, and indeed probably constitute
only a series of links in the continuous chain of deposits and events
running from the beginning of the Eocene to the Vicksburg Jackson
epoch; yet by reason of the glauconitic element, which promises to con¬
nect it with distant deposits, and by reason of the distinctive rockmass
forming its basal member, the deposit is important. Standing by itself,
it is a puzzling phenomenon; but its unique materials are in some re¬
spects analogous with the quartzites of the Grand Gulf, and still more
closely with the siliceous clays of the lower Lafayette, and these
analogies aid in interpreting the obscure record of the buhrstone, and
thus in elucidating the conditions of genesis of the entire series.

In brief, the Claiborne-Meridian deposits stand for a definite episode
in continent growth, during which the land lay low, yet not so low as
during the next later epoch, and during which the waters rose high,
yet not so high as later ; thus the rivers were fairly active and swept into
the embayment fine detritus, of which an important element was silice¬
ous debris derived from the decomposition of Paleozoic cherts weathered
out of the Appalachian and Cumberland rocks. This episode can be
separated from that marked by the Lignitic only in the Mississippi
embayment and eastern Gulf States.

THE LIGNITIC.

Most, significant of the embayment deposits through its elucidation
of continent history is the Columbia formation ; most extensive of the
lowland deposits is the Lafayette; most impressive of the embay -
ment deposits through its testimony as to the activity of the great river
in later geologic time is the Grand Gulf formation ; but most important
of these deposits in extent, in thickness, in topographic expression, is
the vast deposit, combined by some though divided by others, which
Hilgard styled the “Lignitic” or “Northern Lignitic.”

In Kentucky the deposits extend from the Tennessee to the Missis¬
sippi, including the Lignitic and probably the Hickman of Lougliridge.1
Here the predominant materials are dark clays and mudstones, which
toward the deeper part of the old embayment are finer, more definitely

‘Geol. Survey of Kentucky, Report on Jackson purchase region, 1888, pp. 17, 18, and geologic map.

416

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

bedded, and sometimes calcareous, or siliceous, e. g., at Hickman, where
the deposits are so distinctive as to have been set apart by Loughridge
under the name of “ Hickman group.” 1 In Tennessee the claystones of
this deposit crop from beneath the Lafayette formation within a dozen
or two miles of the Tennessee River, appear in some of the deeper
drainage ways thence westward, and are again exposed at the base of
the rampart overlooking Reelfoot Lake and in Randolph Bluff. In 1869
S afford designated the deposit as developed toward the Tennessee River
the “Porter’s Creek group” and, as developed on the Mississippi, the
“Bluff Lignite.”2

In Tennessee and Kentucky the prevailing material is massive clay or
semimetam orphic mudstone ; but toward the center of the embayment.
the materials are even finer and more regularly disposed than at the
sides, and in the exposures on the shores of Reelfoot Lake, about Idlewild,
there are occasional regular ledges of semilithifled calcareous claystone
of deeper water facies than is displayed in the northernmost outcrops
at Hickman.

In Mississippi the deposit is occasionally exposed at the base of the
Lafayette over a broad lunoid zone stretching from the Mississippi to
the headwaters of Wolf River on the thirty- fifth parallel, and sweeping
thence south- southeastward to the Alabama line about latitude 32° 30',
the width of the outcrop diminishing from over 75 miles to not more
than 25 to 30. Throughout most of the region from the Ohio River to
the Tombigbee the local variations in the deposit are so irregular and
the outcrops from beneath the exceptionally heavy mantle of the Lafay¬
ette sands so rare and imperfect that the series has not been definitely
divided save by Loughridge; but in Alabama the Lafayette mantle
thins, exposures are more frequent, and the variations in the deposit
become more orderly, and Smith and Johnson have separated the mass
into six or seven Avell defined members.3 The terrane stretches quite
across Alabama, with certain changes in composition, crossing the
Chattahoochee River in a 40-mile zone, separated by Langdon into five
members with an aggregate thickness of 670 feet.4

The six or seven members discriminated in Alabama by Smith and
Johnson combine to form a single homogenetic formation comprising
three well marked divisions, defined by color, which is here an index
of constitution. The upper fourth consists of irregularly bedded dark
siliceous and lignitic clays and heterogeneous sands, interstratified
with discontinuous beds of lignite and continuous layers of clay and
sand containing marine fossils. The medial three-fifths of the forma¬
tion is made up of rather more regularly stratified clays and sands of
light color, frequently cross-bedded, containing occasional beds of lig¬
nite and of marine sands, one of which is 50 or 60 feet thick and yields

1 Ibid., p. 37.

“Geology of Tennessee, 1869, p. 422.

3 Bull. 43, U. S. Geol. Survey, p. 18.

4 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., vol 2, 1890, p. 605.

M'GEE.]

Extent of the lignitic deposits.

4 1 7

littoral fossils The basal deposits are irregularly bedded or even black
calcareous slialy or silty clays with few fossils or definite beds of lignite,
though considerable quantities of carbonaceous matter are dissemi¬
nated throughout its mass.

On the Chattahoochee River the series comprises the Hatchetigbee
brown, purple, and gray laminated sandy clays and cross-bedded sands,
only 10 feet thick, and the Bashi lignitiferous clays and marls, 45
feet thick; the Tuscahoma sands and sandy clays, the Nanafalia lime¬
stones and calcareous claystones with conspicuous siliceous layers, in all
350 feet thick; and the Midway argillaceous and sandy limestones and
calcareous sands, with a well defined marine fauna, reaching 2 IS feet in
thickness. The whole series here is only G70 feet thick, although on the
Alabama River the thickness is over 850 feet.

West of the Mississippi embayment the corresponding series of de¬
posits has been recognized with greater or less certainty, notably by
Hilg ard1 in Louisiana, and by Johnson2 in western Louisiana and Texas.
The Camden series discriminated by Hill3 in Arkansas, and the Timber
Belt or Sabine beds discriminated by Penrose4 in Texas, have also been
provisionally correlated with Hilgard’s Lignitic on the ground of general
lithologic similarity. This provisional correlation is greatly strengthened
by homogeny : The eastern and western deposits are similarly related to
a common Cretaceous floor; they record a similar continental configura¬
tion; they represent similar conditions of deposition with respect both
to source of materials and to the attitudes of land and Gulf bottom;
and in all other ways they appear to stand for a stage in continent de¬
velopment so closely similar as to argue identity. But beyond this
general geologic correlation inference may not safely be carried, though
there is a strong suggestion of at least partial equivalence between the
western Lignitic and the easternmost extension of the wonderfully
widespread Laramie formation of the western plains and the eastern
Rockies.

Collectively, Hilgard’s old Lignitic group of strata is pregnant with
records of the past. The deposits occupy an extended area and tell of
wide transformation of land and sea. By their change in lithologic
character from the depths of the embayment along its eastern side
they indicate gradual transition from estuarine to oceanic deposition ;
by their volume and comparative coarseness they tell of active rivers,
and so either of a high level in the interior or of some equivalent
genetic condition. They also prove that the great river of to-day
was the great river of the olden time and, at the beginning of the
Eocene as at the end of the Pleistocene, dominated the entire interior
basin and so far outstripped other rivers of the eastern continent that
the several records may not yet be correlated. Viewed collectively and

1 Supplementary ami final report of a geological reconnaissance of Louisiana, 1873, pp. 20-23.

2 Report on iron regions of northern Louisiana anil eastern Texas, 1887.

3 Annual report geological survey of Arkansas for 1888, vol. 2, pp. 59-G5.

4 Report of the geological survey of Texas for 1880, p. 22 et teq.

12 GEOL - 27

418

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

appreciatively, the deposits are found to record approximately not only
the areas of land and sea during the early Eocene, but the character of
tlis ehores, the volumes of the rivers, and the altitude of the land; and
they suggest means of correlating their entire mass not only with the
more easterly deposits of the Atlantic, but also with the formations of
the interior of the continent long corroded by the western tributaries
of the greatest of American rivers.

THE I'AM UNKEY FORMATION.

Quite recently a well defined early Tertiary formation has been dis¬
criminated on both physical and biotic grounds on the Atlantic slope
by Darton, and from the river along which typical exposures occur, has
been named the “Pamunkey.” Mr. Barton’s description is as follows:

This formation occupies a belt of considerable width extending through Maryland
and Virginia above tide level, with a length of about 200 miles. The greater part of
its area is buried beneath younger formations, but it is exposed extensively in each
of the larger depressions, where it is a conspicuous member of the coastal plain
series.

The formation consists of a homogeneous sheet of fine-grained materials, glauco¬
nitic sands mainly, usually profusely fossiliferous. Excepting a few local beds of
clay, secondary limestones and some gravels at its base, the formation does not com¬
prise stratigraphic components. Wherever the formation has been bared of overly¬
ing formations its glauconitic constituent is either weathered out, leaving fine light-
colored sands, or decomposed and the iron redeposited as a red or brown stain, and
in crusts and concretions. This weathered phase is general in the northern part
of the region beyond the edge of the overlying Chesapeake formation, along the
western margin in Virginia, and in all old outcrops.'

The characteristic fauna of this formation is well known throughout
the southern Atlantic slope and in the Gulf lowland, and biotic corre¬
lations have already been made ; but the physical delimitation of the
deposits has not been carried much beyond the James River, in Virginia,
while the definite physical delimitation of the approximately contem¬
poraneous deposits of the Gulf slope terminates on the Chattahoochee
River. At present it is impossible to bridge this break of nearly 800
miles. Moreover, while certain petrographic elements of the Pamunkey
formation have been interpreted, and while the relations of the deposit
as a whole indicate certain geographic conditions during the period of
its formation, too little is known concerning the genesis of the glau¬
conitic deposits to warrant definite statement concerning the origin of
the materials. Accordingly, correlation of the early Tertiary deposits
of the Atlantic slope with the much more extensive deposits of the same
era on the Gulf slope and in the Mississippi einbayment, is at present
quite out of the question. Only this much is certainly known: During
the early Tertiary the land sank and the sea rose along the Atlantic
seaboard, and during the early Tertiary the land sank and the sea rose in
the Gulf region; but in the one case the record is simple and tells only

1 Bull. Gool. Soc. Am., vol. 2, 1890, p. 439.

M'GEE.I

SYSTEMIC VARIATIONS OF THE CRETACEOUS.

419

of sea work, while in the other the record is complex and tells much of
river work with less of sea work; and whether the continent changes
in the two regions were wholly or even partly contemporaneous may not
be said with confidence.

TIIK UPPER CRETACEOUS.

The Eocene and Neocene deposits of the Gulf lowland give remarka¬
bly consistent records concerning a particularly significant point: the
record of the inland extremity of the embayment is preeminently sim¬
ple, while that of the widely separated embayment sides is more com¬
plex; and this peculiarity in the record repeats a like peculiarity in the
record of the Cretaceous.

In western Kentucky Loughridge recognizes a single Cretaceous de¬
posit, consisting of laminated black clay with sand partings and beds of
white and yellow micaceous sand,1 200 feet or more in thickness. He
points out that iu lithologic features the Kentucky beds can scarcely
be distinguished from the oldest of the upper Cretaceous series of Mis¬
sissippi and Alabama (Eutaw), though he refers them to the next newer
member (the Ripley), partly on personal grounds and partly by reason
of the entire absence of fossils.

In Tennessee Safford finds a more complex series, which he differen¬
tiates into the Ripley sandy and glauconitic clays; the “Green Sand or
Shell Bed,” consisting of glauconitic sands and clays; and the Coffee
Sand, made up of stratified micaceous sands with thin leaves of dark
clay and occasionally thicker clay beds ; the whole 800 or 1,000 feet
thick.2

In Mississippi the series was differentiated by Hilgard into the Rip¬
ley micaceous sandy marls, sandy limestones, and hard crystalline lime¬
stone with a distinctive fauna; the Rotten limestone (now called the
Tombigbee chalk by Smith), made up of “a soft chalky rock of a white
or pale bluish tint, with very little sand;3” the Tombigbee sand, com¬
prising fine grained micaceous and calcareous sands; and the Eutaw
group, made up of sands with some gravel and layers of laminated clay.4
The thickness assigned to the series in 1871 was nearly 2,000 feet.5

According to Smith and Johnson the succession of deposits in western
Alabama falls into three systemic members, viz, the Ripley, the Rotten
limestone, and the Eutaw (the Tombigbee sands failing or else merging
either with the Rotten limestone or, more probably, with the Eutaw),
the aggregate thickness approaching 1,600 feet.6 In crossing Alabama
the upper Cretaceous series changes rapidly, perhaps more rapidly than
in any other equal length of its zone, the principal change being the dis-

1 Geol. Survey of Ky., Report. Jackson Purchase, 1888, pp. 18-32.

2Geol. of Tennessee, 1869, pp. 410, 421.

3 Geol. anti Agriculture of Miss., 1860, p. 76.

* Ibid., pp. 60 to 106.

6 Proc. Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., vol. 20, p. 222, plate.

6 Bull. 43, U. S. Geol. Survey, 1887, p. 18.

420

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

appearance of tlie predominant calcareous member, colloquially known
as tlie Rotten limestone. On the Chattahoochee River, according to
Langdon, the upper Cretaceous is represented only by the Ripley and
the Eutaw, with an aggregate thickness of 1,376 feet.1

The well known upper Cretaceous of the cis-Mississippi terranes is a
slender crescent semicircling the Cumberland an 1 Appalachian prov¬
inces; its northern horn lies just beyond the Tennessee River and is
exposed to the daily sun and the eyes of man only in erosion valleys;
at its broadest bulge, in eastern Mississippi and western Alabama, it
forms the prevailing surface over a 40-mile zone; while the eastern horn
is in the little known tract of central Georgia.

Beyond the Mississippi a corresponding series has been made out
and has been correlated by the contained fossils with that of the nearer
area ; but physical continuity is interrupted by the vast bottom lands
of the Mississippi, and physical correlation is thereby embarrassed.
Moreover, in this direction the deposits grade in unknown fashion into
the wide stretching sands and shales of the plains and mountains, and
these sands and shales were formed and accumulated under conditions
so different from those obtaining in the cis-Mississippi region as to dis¬
courage physical correlation.

Later Cretaceous formations are also known, but chiefly from their
fossils, in the southern Atlantic slope, particularly in the Carolinas; but
the mass relation of these to the well defined series of the cis-Mississippi
crescent has not been ascertained.

The continent history recorded in the clays and sands and limestones
laid down in the Cretaceous sea about the flank of the Cumberland and
southern Appalachian and Piedmont provinces is wonderfully clear
and decisive. The sands and clays of the northern limb tell of active
river work, and, through poverty in fossils, of brackish, muddy waters
and shifting currents, and prove that even thus early in the building of
the land the principal source of mechanical sediments lay in the north
and northwest; the prevailing limestones of the swelling crescent tell
of deeper waters and of sluggish, yet persistent, rivers charged with
precipitates gathered among the limestone hills of the plateau and
washed from the corrugated strata of the mountains, and indicate that
thus early in continental history the cis-Mississippi region had become
moderately stable and quiescent; while the disappearance of the lime¬
stone about the junction of the Appalachian and southern Piedmont
provinces tell of the dependence of sea work on river work, and prove
that the early partition of the drainage was much the same as to-day,
though suggesting that the Atlantic rivers have, during later eons,
stretched farther inland than of yore and robbed their westerly neigh¬
bors of a part of their legitimate territory and tribute.

1 Bull. Geol. Soc. Aru., 1890, vol. 2, p. 605.

M' GEE. ]

T1IE EASTERN LATER CRETACEOUS.

421

THE SEVERN FORMATION.

In the middle Atlantic slope Dartoii has discriminated a later Cre¬
taceous formation named, from the river of typical exposure, the Severn.1
He describes it as consisting throughout almost entirely of line black
sand more or less flecked with scales of mica, sparingly but irregularly
glauconitic, and usually containing considerable carbonacous material.
It outcrops in a narrow bolt beginning in a feather edge a few miles
south of Washington and extending northward to the Delaware. It
rests unconformably on the early Cretaceous Potomac formation, and
is in turn unconformably overlain by the Pamunkey formation, from
which it is widely distinct, both structurally and faunally. Mr. Darton
adds :

The Severn formation ia the continuous southern extension of the Now Jersey Cre¬
taceous greensand series, but whether it represents all or part of these members is
not as yet determined. In Maryland it is a stratigraphic unit, distinctly separable
from the New Jersey series as a whole by its homogeneity of constitution, and it is
with this restriction that the term “Severn” is applied.

The interpretation of the Severn record is far from complete. It in¬
deed tells clearly of sinking of the land and encroachment of the sea to
the extent of many hundred feet and many scores of miles respectively,
measured from the present shore; it is known from collateral evidence
that the Potomac, the Susquehanna,, and other main rivers of the
middle Atlantic slope flowed along their present lines, and Davis has
recently shown that the present drainage of northern New Jersey and
New England was outlined during the base-level period preceding
Cretaceous deposition;2 yet the sources of the Severn sediments have
never been clearly ascertained, and their character is so different from
that which might be expected of the detritus derived from the con¬
tiguous land area that Cook thought it necessary to postulate a Meso¬
zoic Atlantis to explain them. It is known that the sinking of the
land and the encroachment of the waters diminished southward pro¬
gressively, and perhaps ended somewhat north of the Hatteras axis;
and by reason of this known attenuation or disappearance of the forma¬
tion, as well as by reason of the vast intermediate expanse not yet fully
investigated, it is inexpedient to correlate physically this formation,
either with the entire southern series or with any of the members of
that series.

THE POTOMAC AND TUSCALOOSA FORMATIONS.

It is well known that the progress of geologic investigation has fol¬
lowed the inverse rather than the direct order of the proximity and
accessibility of the phenomena investigated, and this is as true of the
physical study of the coastal plain deposits as of geology in general.
The clastic series of the coastal lowland comprises a widespread super -

1 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., vol. 2, 1890, p. 438.

2 Bull., Geol. Soc. Am., vol. 2, 1890, p. 549 et seq.

422

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

ficial deposit of Pleistocene age; an uncomformaldy subjacent deposit
of vast extent and of prime importance as an element in physical his¬
tory; several fossiliferous deposits whose biotic contents have been
under investigation for over half a century; and finally a basal bed
standing for the beginning of later Mesozoic deposition, the initial link
in the long chain of episodes in continent development recorded in the
coastal plain — the datum-plane alike of coastal structure and coastal
history; yet this imperfectly exposed basal bed was the first to be
studied by the physical method. In its northern extension this is the
Potomac formation;1 in its southern extension it is the Tuscaloosa for¬
mation of Smith and Johnson.2

In its type locality (on the Potomac River at Washington) the forma¬
tion consists of two vaguely differentiated members, of which the upper
is an inconstantly bedded and protean clay of variegated colors, either
clean or sandy and pebbly, and the lower a generally friable {sandstone,
arkose or gravel of irregular and inconstant structure.3 In its type
locality (on the Tuscaloosa) the Tuscaloosa formation is composed
largely of purple and motley clays, interstratified with white, yellow¬
ish white, pink, and light purple micaceous sands, and near the base of
the formation of dark gray, nearly black, thinly laminated clays, with
sandy partings.4 On the Chattahoochee River the formation is made
up of irregularly and inconstantly bedded, sometimes massive, and in
general heteromorphic white-red mottled and sometimes bluish gray
clays and sands, frequently micaceous, together with beds and lenses
of arkose and lines or beds of predominantly quartzose gravel. The
formation has not yet been traced across Georgia, though it has been
recognized at Macon and at Augusta ; and it has been definitely dis¬
criminated in South Carolina, where it is made up chiefly of arkose of
inconstant structure, and where it is overlain by the Lafayette, as illus¬
trated in PI. xxxvi, which is mechanically reproduced from a photo¬
graph. It has been discriminated by Holmes elsewhere in South Caro¬
lina and in North Carolina at a large number of localities. In Virginia
it has been under study for a decade by Fontaine, who has mono¬
graphed its wonderfully rich and distinctive flora.5 Farther westward
the typical Tuscaloosa deposits have been traced by Johnson in north¬
western Alabama and northeastern Mississippi well toward the Ten¬
nessee line; and there are good grounds for considering the basal
portion, at least, of Safford’s Coffee sands to be physically equivalent to
the well defined series discriminated from the later Cretaceous forma¬
tions elsewhere about the inland margin of the coastal plain.

Although important structurally, the Potomac - Tuscaloosa terrane

1 Seventh Annual Report U. S. Geol. Survey, 1888, p. 546.

2 Bull. 43, U. S. Geol. Survey, 1887, p. 16, footnote. (All but the first three lines of this footnote are
evidently misplaced from body of text.)

3 Am. Jour. Sci., 3d ser., vol. 35, 1888, p. 133.

4 Bull. 43, U. S. Geol. Survey, 1887, p. 95.

6 Monograph, U. S. Geol. Survey, vol. 15, 1889.

JVTCJEE.]

423

THE POTOMAC (TUSCALOOSA) FORMATION.

is unimportant geographically. Even where best developed its out¬
crops form but a narrow zone, seldom 10 miles wide and commonly
appearing only in the erosion valleys by which it is traversed ; and there
are long stretches of thy Piedmont margin in which the deposits are
completely overlapped by the newer formations. Moreover, the out¬
crop is still farther complicated by later geologic process, in that mar¬
ginal outliers are frequently cut off by erosion so as now to form com¬
pletely insulated remnants from rods to miles in extent and perhaps
miles inland from the general coastal border. Beyond the Mississippi
the break in the terrane by reason of erosion and subsequent deposition
is so broad that the basal Cretaceous deposits of Arkansas, Indian Terri¬
tory, and Texas (the Trinity formation of Hill) may not yet be correlated
physically with the cis-Mississippi formation, despite the many indica¬
tions of liomogeny, and despite the approximate identity in flora re¬
cently made out by Ward.

Viewed as a whole the deposits are diverse in composition. In the
northern type locality, clays predominate, sand is abundant, arkose is
common, and quartzite pebbles and cobbles constitute a considerable
portion of the formation ; farther southward, where the Piedmont plateau
is wider and the rivers do not reach the easternmost quartzite ridges
of the Appalachian province, the predominant material is clay, with a
nearly equal element of sand and an important share of arkose, while
the coarser element is sandy or made up of quartz pebbles; toward
the southern extremity of the Piedmont province arkose is perhaps
predominant, sands and clays are nearly as abundant, and the pebbles
are scant and small and chiefly quartzose; about the type locality of the
characteristic southern phase (Tuscaloosa) clays predominate, sands
are abundant, the pebbles are small and rather scant and made up of
quartzite, chert, etc., while the arkose completely fails ; and in north¬
western Alabama and northeastern Mississippi the composition remains
much the same, save that sand becomes predominant. This diversity
in composition expresses diversity only in local conditions of genesis
and not in the general condition; the deposit as a whole records the
first of the land depressions and sea incursions which have combined
to build the coastal plain, and the local characteristics merely reflect
the local features of the shores, of contiguous terranes, and of tributary
rivers.

The leading features in the history recorded in the Potomac and
Tuscaloosa formations have been set forth in detail elsewhere, and also
have been recapitulated with some fullness; and the recapitulation may
be repeated :

At an undetermined epoch in the Mesozoic, the southern extremity of the Appa¬
lachians, together with the Piedmont region on the east and the Cumberland plateau
on the west, was submerged, and the uneven surface, sculptured by subaerial erosion,
formed an irregular shore line diversified by a multitude of estuaries and a highly
inclined and unequal sea bottom. Within the estuaries and upon the uneven sea bot¬
tom the strong currents, high tides, and violent waves of a deep seacoast washed here

424

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

and there, assorted rudely, and finally deposited the coarse detritus brought down by
numerous streams of high declivity — the upper reaches of the river courses shortened
by submergence and steepened by tilting; the strong currents, the constant shifting
of littoral deposits, and the variable salinity of the estuarine and shoreward waters
(depending upon the seasonal and nonperiodic variability in stage of the affluents)
were inimical to organic existence; but leaves, logs, and other vegetable matters
were occasionally swept into the sea by the rivers. The downward movement during
this epoch was interrupted, and about the middle of the epoch perhaps reversed ;
but in general it went on progressively. With continued deposition a submarine
terrace analogous to those now fringing the Atlantic and Gulf coasts was apparently
developed ; and, with the growth of the terrace and consequent shallowing of the
offshore waters, there was evidently a diminution in strength of currents and violence
of waves, accompanied by a diminution in heterogeneity and coarseness of sediments.
The deposits produced by these agencies are those of the Tuscaloosa formation.1

There is a great hiatus in the geologic history of the Atlantic slope. The history
is fairly legible up to the termination of the Paleozoic deposition, and it is even
more clearly legible from mid-Cretaceous time to the present; but the hiatus in¬
cludes the most interesting period in the evolution of the eastern portion of thecon-
tiuent. The transfer of sea and land, the elevation and corrugation of the Appa¬
lachians, and the profound displacement and metamorphism of the Piedmont rocks ;
the degradation of thousands of feet if not miles of strata and the transportation of
materials whither no man knows; the deposition of the Triassic and Rhetic rocks
under conditions which no geologist has ever clearly pictured in imagination, at least
to the satisfaction of his fellow geologists ; the Triassic displacement and diking;
the post-Triassic degradation of thousands of feet of strata and the removal of the
ddbris to other regions — these and many other remarkable episodes have been com¬
pletely blotted out of the geologic record as commonly interpreted. But the Potomac
formation narrows the hiatus. The formation itself carries the record back from
mid-Cretaceous time to the earliest dawn of the Cretaceous or the closing episodes
of the Jurassic, and the post-Rhctic and pre-Potomac degradation will tell the story
of the Jurassic as eloquently, when men have come to read geologic history in
erosion as well as iu deposition, as if the deposits of the period were exposed to ob¬
servation instead of lying beneath the thousands of feet of newer strata forming the
Atlantic bottom. So while the hiatus is not yet closed it is reduced by a fifth, a
fourth, or perhaps a third of its length.2

RESUME.

Iii physiography the coastal plain is a fringe of lowland stretching
from the Hudson to the Rio Grande, with a pronounced inland expan¬
sion about the Mississippi, and with a pronounced oceanward extension
at the southeastern extremity. Structurally the coastal plain consists
of a series of successive formations laid one upon the other in leaves of
varying continuity and varying inland extent, and each of the forma¬
tions, so far as they have been correlated, greatly thickens and expands
in the inland extension about the great river.

The latest of the formations is the Columbia, which overlies half the
coastal lowland as a mantle of sand and loam with a basal bed of coarse
materials, save in the Mississippi embayment where it thickens so far
as to include a vast sheet of clay; and this deposit is demarked by a
decided unconformity, representing erosion of perhaps half the volume
of the immediately subjacent formation. Then comes the Lafayette

1 Bull. 43. U. S. Geol. Survey, 1887. pp. 136-137.

2 Am. Jour. Sci., 3(1 sor., vol. 35, 1888, pp. 142, 143.

M* GEE. |

THE COASTAL PLAIN FORMATIONS.

425

loam, sand, and gravel, once occupying practically the whole coastal
plain; it is thickened and diversified greatly in the Mississippi embay -
ment, and is separated by a strong unconformity from the subjacent beds.
Next in order of the deposits thus far discriminated on physical grounds
lies the Grand Gulf formation, well known only in the Mississippi embay
ment, though probably merging in the east with fossiliferous deposits,
which is sometimes called Miocene on biotic grounds; and beneath it
are indications of an unconformity. Still lower lies the most extensive
calcareous deposit of the coastal plain, the Vicksburg- Jackson or the
White limestone overspreading the area between the Mississippi and
the Atlantic Ocean, which is abundantly charged with mechanical de¬
tritus in the Mississippi embayment and is unknown in the north. Be¬
neath lie the silico-argillaceous deposits forming the Claiborne and Me¬
ridian, well developed only in the Mississippi embayment and apparently
representing an earlier stage in deposition of the period during which
the calcareous beds were laid down. Next lower lie the Lignitie beds,
constituting, like the Grand Gulf, a typical embayment deposit; and
eastward toward the Atlantic basin the last three imperfectly demarked
members, calcareous, silicoargillaceous and argillaceous, appear to blend
so completely that if represented at all in the north it is by a single
homogenous deposit. Below this great series of early Tertiary deposits,
there is probably an unconformity. The next series comprises the
upper Cretaceous deposits, thickest of all the successive leaves in the
coastal structure, which almost exactly homologizes, phase for phase
and stage for stage, the early Tertiary series; and, as is the case in the
early Tertiary, the members blend eastward so that if represented at all
in the North it is by a single homogenous member. Whether or not an
unconformity separates the upper Cretaceous from the subjacent divi¬
sion has not been definitely determined ; but certain it is that the coastal
formations begin with a sheet of coarse debris made up of the discharge of
the nearest rivers; and this sheet is now dissected by erosion and often
buried beneath the newer leaves in coastal structure.

The sequence of events recorded in the coastal plain deposits is one of
changes in the relation of land and water resulting from rise and fall
of the continent; with each continental fall the shores advanced upon
the land, and the lower hills and plains and river valleys were sheeted
with sediments; with each continental rise the shores retreated and
the rains and rivers attacked the successive sheets of sediments and
carved channels, sometimes entirely through more than one formation,
and sometimes far seaward of the present shore line; and the con¬
tinental rise and fall varied from place to place in the coastal plain, and
from time to time in the course of its history.

The history of development of the eastern land is recorded in nature
in characters so grand that but a small part of a single one may be
seen at once, so that the direct reading is difficult; but intelligent
men of modern days annihilate space and time by the aid of memory

426

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

and imagination, and thus combine the parts of char¬
acters and the characters themselves, and easily read
aright the rhythmic runes of terrestrial rise and fall.
So may the geologic history of the province be read.

There are two languages in which history may be
interpreted : The first is the verbal language, which
sufficed for primitive purposes and which suffices to¬
day for many simple purposes; the second is the
graphic language required for the expression of highly
differentiated conceptions and for a wide variety of
special purposes. These two languages are of unlike
order: It is the strength of the first that it subserves
a wide range of uses, and permits unlimited qualifica¬
tions of statement; it is the weakness of this language
that it expresses conceptions of quantity only by un¬
natural and inadequate devices, and that its complex
machinery conceals all but the central part of a concep¬
tion — the elaborate conception requires so many pages
for its presentation that the first part fades before the
last part comes into view. It is the merit of the graphic
language that it expresses quantity and relation, and
juxtaposes in natural order the various elements in a
complex conception ; it is the demerit of this language
that it admits of no qualification, and that thus far in
the differentiation of intellectual methods it is suscep¬
tible of limited application only, since there are con¬
ceptions which, albeit definite and tangible, can not be
intelligibly depicted. The verbal language is qualita¬
tive and diffuse, yet of higher order than pantomime;
the graphic language is quantitative and condensed,
and of higher order than the verbal language. There
are stages in the development of knowledge in which it
becomes possible to pass from the verbal language to
the graphic language, either for purposes of study or
for purposes of presentation, and when such a stage is
reached it is invariably found that the use of graphic
language renders conception far more definite and tan¬
gible than before, and at the same time enlarges the
grasp of the student so that he easily leaps where
before he laboriously crept; and there are many cases
in which graphic presentation conveys in a moment
complex conceptions which by the verbal method could
be conveyed only in hours or not at all.

The brief presentation of leading structural features
and historical episodes of the coastal plain has been
made in verbal language. Let the same conceptions
be still more briefly presented in graphic language.

^gee.] STRUCTURE OF THE COASTAL PLAIN. 427

The accompanying diagram, Fig. 34, is a generalized section through
the coastal plain in the middle Atlantic slope. It shows approximately
the relative position and configuration of the Piedmont plain and the
coastal lowland, and the relative positions and thicknesses of each of the
coastal plain formations.

The diagram forming Fig. 35 similarly expresses the structure found
in the Santee Fiver basin iu South Carolina. Since the graphic language
does uot admit of qualification in expression, it is desirable to point out
that this diagram can be regarded only as an approximation to the
truth.

Fig. 35.— General section through the coastal plain iu the southern Atlantic slope. (Redrawn and
reduced from a section constructed by Dr. R. H. Loughridge).

Fig. 36. — General section through tho coastal plain in the eastern Gulf slope (Chattahoochee River).
(Generalized from sections constructed and described by Mr. Lawrence C. Johnson, Dr. Eugene A.
Smith, Mr. Daniel W. Langdon, Jr., and Dr. J. W. Spencer).

Fig. 37.— General section through the coastal plain in the eastern Gulf slope (western Alabama).
(Generalized in part from sections constructed and described by Dr. Eugene A. Smith and Mr. Law.
rence C. Johnson.)

Fig. 38. — General section through the coastal plain in the Mississippi embayment. (Generalized in
part from sections constructed and described by Dr. E. W. Hilgard and Mr. Lawrence C. Johnson.)

The diagram represented iu Fig. 36 re] (resents with approximate
accuracy the structural conditions displayed in the banks and bluffs of
the Chattahoochee Fiver, and thus conveys a fairly accurate conception
of the relations of the physiographic units in that portion of the lowland
province. J

The diagram forming Fig. 37 expresses the quantitative relation of
parts found to obtain on the Tuscaloosa and Tombigbee and Mobile
rivers in western Alabama.

The diagram shown in Fig. 38 illustrates in roughly approximate fashion
the relations and dimensions of the units in the coastal plain along the
northeast-southwest diagonal of the State of Mississippi, projected
some miles in either direction.

428

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

i /

These five diagrams may
easily fie connected in imagi¬
nation, when they will com¬
bine to express the principal
structural features of the en¬
tire coastal plain 5 yet it is to
be remembered not only that
the second and fifth of the
series, as well as all in some
degree, are only approximately
true to nature, but that the
continuity of many of the units
depicted has not yet finally
been established either by di¬
rect examination or by liomo-
genic correlation. It is to be
remembered too, that the no¬
menclature of coastal plain
formations is in inchoate con¬
dition, and consequently that
while the current names are
synonymous they are not pre¬
cisely isonomons.

From each of the structure
diagrams, conditions and pro¬
cesses may be inferred so defi¬
nitely and tangibly that the
relation of land and sea during
different episodes may also be
represented graphically. The
diagrams forming Figs. 39 to
43 are constructed with this
view, and express a series of
episodes in continental devel¬
opment, of course with a de¬
gree of accuracy less closely
approximate than the physical
representation in the structure
diagrams. Be it observed, too,
that the time limits are intro¬
duced in accordance with care¬
ful estimates from trustworthy
data in only the first two of
these diagrams, and that the
last three give little indication
of the relative duration of the

HISTORY OF THE COASTAL PLAIN.

WGEE.]

429

episodes except through the inference of equality growing out of homo-
genic correlation.

There is a certain uniformity in the structure diagrams indicating
homology among the various members represented in each; there is a
certain uniformity among the genesis diagrams suggesting homogeny
among all; but while the uniformity in structure and in genesis
is suggestive, it must be borne in mind that the area is vast, that sys¬
tematic observation has been extended over only a relatively small

Cretaceous*.

Eocene.

Neocene.

Pleistocene.

Cult borne maun.,

Tu^cal^om. Eutan rUf.lry _ Lxgnitlc Eurhjton* Jcwknn VLcJcsbury Chatixheod*.JJUiff ZaAgette.

Fig. 41. — Neozoic continental oscillations of the caste n Gulf slope (Chattahoochee River).

Cretaeous.

Eocene

Neocene. Pleistocene

Tuscaloosa. Eu taw. Batten. Limestone

Claiborne Jackson.

LtepyLtio . Buhr stone Vicksburg.

Pascagoula, Lafayette

Present SeaLevel .

- - — : - — -

- — — -

— - — y —

Fig. 42. — Neozoic continental oscillations of the eastern Gulf slope (western Alabama).

Cretaceous

Eooepie.

Ncocpne. Pleistocene.

Flatten.

TambigbeeEutcnv Limestone. FlijJey.

Jackson,

Lignttxc. ClatbarneBcJubu^g

GrxtnH^ Gulf. Lafiu/fttc

T*7~escnt, Sect-Levels.

— ■*%

y \l u

— ■"

Fig. 43. — Neozoic continental oscillations of the Mississippi emhayment.

portion of that area, that the lower members of each series are revealed
only locally and rarely, and hence that in the earlier part of the series
the conclusion to which the mind intuitively leaps is no more than
tentative; only in the uppermost two members of the structure series,
in the latest two episodes of the genesis series, are observations suffi¬
ciently definite and extended to render the intuitive conclusion final.

CHAPTER II.

THE FEATURES OF THE FORMATION.

THE FEATURES IN DETAIL.

Although the proximity of the formation is indicated by the presence
of its pebbles in the basal part of the Columbia farther southward, the
southernmost exposure of the undisturbed Lafayette formation near
the Mississippi is 7 or 8 miles south-southeast of Bayou Sara, a mile
west of Thompson Bayou, and midway between Fairview and Star Hill
plantations.' The road cutting here displays five or six feet of rather
sandy but otherwise characteristic Columbia loam, becoming pebbly at
the base and resting unconformably on the Lafayette deposits. These
consist of orange-red sandy loam, containing scattered pebbles, becom¬
ing mottled with pink and gray and faintly stratified at, 3 feet below the
summit. The upper and more massive 3-foot layer is flecked with minute
spots of white, gray, yellow, and cream-tint; and the flecks are found
on examination to consist of fine pulverulent material, apparently sili¬
ceous. The upper portion of the orange-red loam is more obdurate than
either the superjacent Columbia loam or the subjacent semibedded mate¬
rial, and thus forms an outcropping ledge or cornice; and this ledge,
as well as the subjacent mass to a less degree, is characterized by a
smooth (almost semiglazed) surface, and a massive and rock -like aspect,
such as has been found diagnostic of the formation elsewhere.' The
pebbles are subangular and rounded fragments of chert up to an inch
and a half in diameter, sparsely disseminated in the massive summital
ledge, and both disseminated and arranged in lines in the lower por¬
tion. The exposed thickness of the Lafayette deposits is about 10 feet.

Near Bayou Sara there are several less noteworthy exposures of
Lafayette loam, which is sometimes sharply demarked from the sub¬
jacent brown loam of the Columbia, though elsewhere the two deposits
intergrade in such manner that they may not be demarked save by an
arbitrary line. In general the exposures of the Lafayette are defi¬
nitely related to the configuration. Hereabouts the prevailing surface
is a plane of Columbia loam slightly inclined seaward and partially
invaded by dendritic drainage ways in such manner as to give a nas¬
cent autogenetic configuration of wonderfully youthful aspect; the pre¬
vailing profile is a horizontal or slightly inclined line broken by sharp-
cut V-shaped depressions; the roads traversing the country pass from

430

2 Am. Jour. Sci., 3d series, 1890, vol. 40, p. 22.

M^GEE. j

THE FEATURES IN LOUISIANA.

431

plane to ravine and from ravine to plane through cuts, sometimes
originally designed to flatten the grade but always deepened by storm-
wash and the work of wheels and hoofs, so that the best exposures are
in the crenulate scarps of the plane; and in these narrow road gorges
the Lafayette is displayed, with a rounded contour rather than the
angular one of surface deposits, in such manner as to indicate that the
Columbia mantle thins over the ill drained divides and thickens toward
the intervening waterways. So the exposures indicate that the La¬
fayette surface is a strongly undulating one, though characterized by
rounded contours, and that the post-Pleistocene drainage lines generally
follow the courses of their ante-Pleistocene progenitors. Thus, the Co¬
lumbia configuration is indicative of topographic youth, the Lafayette
configuration of topographic maturity. These relations of the deposit to
the configuration are significant, and explain the dearth of exposures of
the Lafayette in the bluffs overlooking the great river as well as in the
lesser bluffs of the minor waterways.

From Baton Rouge northward the river bluffs constitute the scarp of the
inclined Columbia plain, and gradually rise toward Bayou Sara. About
Bayou Sara the rise becomes more rapid and the configuration more
complex, and both the lifting and the complexity of surface culmi¬
nate in Loftus Heights, overlooking the village of Fort Adams. With
the modification in configuration from Bayou Sara northward the Co¬
lumbia deposits thin and the Lafayette exposures multiply. Half a mile
north of Bayou Sara-on -the- Hill (or St. Francisville) a 12-foot road cut
is excavated to half its depth in unmistakable Lafayette loam, massive,
rock like and semiglazed in aspect as usual, generally orange red but
flecked with white, pink, and cream as usual, structureless above, faintly
bedded below, with partially disseminated chert pebbles as usual — in
short, a typical example of the most strongly individualized formation
of Cenozoic time.

Farther northward and eastward from Bayou Sara the riverward
ravines diminish in depth and number and the surface flattens, and so,
despite the gradual attenuation of the Columbia deposits, exposures of
Lafayette are uncommon, particularly over the uplands; but toward
Laurel Hill (on the Woodville and Bayou Sara Railway, near the Missis¬
sippi Louisiana line and 18 miles east of the river bluffs) the brown loam
thins and the ante-Pleistocene orange-red loam appears with increasing
frequency until it crops in every 3-foot road cutting or stream gully,
while its characteristic autogenetic configuration, inferred with diffi¬
culty south of Bayou Sara, constitutes the face of the country. Only a
few miles east of here, indeed, the Columbia shore line ran ; and the Co¬
lumbia deposit is but a meager mantle composed largely of rearranged
Lafayette sands and gravels, and this mantle is erosion-tattered to
such an extent that the characters of the older formation are but half
concealed. Here, accordingly, the distinctive features of the Lafayette
are revealed alike in the rugose topography and in the numberless
channels and gullies and road cuts to which the steep slopes give rise.

432

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Three-fourths of a mile northeast of Laurel FLU on the Woodville
road the Lafayette stands in the vertical walls of a road cut 12 to
15 feet deep, with but a veneer of brown loam above. As usual, its
upper portion is massive, rock-like, orange-red but flecked with white,
and dotted with pebbles; and it is noteworthy that this upper por¬
tion here is fully 10 feet thick, grading imperceptibly into mottled sandy
clays. It is noteworthy, too, that the pebbles are materially larger and
more abundant than toward Bayou Sara, though the material remains
the same. All the pebbles, from 2-incli subangular masses down to
coarse grains, are of white, yellow, gray, or bluish chert, sometimes
stained externally and cemented into beds of pudding stone by ferrugi¬
nous infiltrations. Two miles northwest of Laurel Hill the gravel is
exceptionally coarse and abundant, and the bed is worked for road
metal. Midway between gravel bed and road cut, the western prong
of Thompsons Bayou cleaves the Lafayette to its base, exposing Grand
Gulf mudstones below; and in a neighboring ravine the lower portion
of the Lafayette formation is well displayed. Here it consists of strati¬
fied brown, red and yellow sands, with intercalated pebble beds, the
pebble beds generally and the sand sheets sometimes cemented into fer¬
ruginous conglomerates and sandstones.

Hereabouts there is displayed a relation between the Lafayette for¬
mation and the surface configuration different from that partly observed
and partly inferred about Bayou Sara. The prevailing land surface is
indeed that inferred to exist beneath the Columbia nearer the great
river and at a lower level ; but here the characteristic Lafayette de¬
posits generally fail in the banks and immediate bluffs of the larger
waterways which are usually cut down to* the Grand Gulf mudstones,
so that the orange-tinted deposit commonly crops out only in minor ra¬
vines; from which it appears that the Lafayette mantle was of limited
thickness (probably not more than 75 feet), and that it was completely
cut away by the ante- Pleistocene streams to be replaced by Columbia
deposits largely derived from its own upland remnants; near the low¬
land the Lafayette hills are buried beneath a mantle of northern origin;
in the upland the hills are Grand Gulf and buried partly beneath the
Lafayette and partly beneath a mantle derived from it.

Laurel Hill takes its name from a slight elevation on the general
southerly slope from the crest of the Grand Gulf ridge toward the
Louisiana lowland; but in this region the bedding and surface planes
of the Columbia formation incline southward at about the same rate as
the general antecedent surface, so that the Pleistocene deposits thin
eastward more rapidly than northward despite the greater elevation
in the latter direction. So, as ascertained by Johnson, the Columbia
mantle soon disappears toward the Pearl River, and the Lafayette
becomes the prevailing surface terrane to and for some distance beyond
that river. In this direction the features of the formation displayed
in northern Louisiana and southwestern Mississippi are maintained, save

Mr GEE.]

FEATURES IN SOUTHWESTERN MISSISSIPPI.

433

that the pebbles grow smaller, the sand element of the loam finer and
the (day element more abundant, while the deposit attenuates to such
an extent that Pearl River and its main tributaries and even the minor
waterways frequently cut through it.

North of Laurel Hill the materials of the deposit gradually grow
coarser ; the pebbles are larger, the sand is more abundant, and the color
is ruddier than ever. In this direction it remains partly concealed by the
brown loam mantle 5 but in the gullies of abandoned fields, as well as in
road cuttings and storm runnels, the newer loam has been washed away
and the gaudy colors of the Lafayette glare from the sloping surfaces,
yards or rods in extent and scores in number within each hour’s jour¬
ney. In this part of Mississippi the lands are invaded by modern
erosion, due primarily to deforesting and secondarily to the abandonment
of the fields; and in every “old field” the relations between the attenu
ated Columbia mantle and the subjacent orange-red loam are well re¬
vealed. Atypical illustration of this relation is shown in Fig. 44, which
is a mechanical reproduction of a photograph.

From numberless exposures of the contact between the Lafayette
and Columbia formations displayed in the fields and road cuts, it is seen
that the relations of the deposits vary from place to place. Commonly
there is a rather abrupt transition in material and structure within a zone
of a foot or less; less commonly the transition is sharp, and the forma¬
tion may be demarked by a definite line; but not infrequently the two
deposits intergrade in such manner that it is impossible to separate
them save in some arbitrary fashion — the zone of transition may be a
yard or more in thickness, and may partake of the features of both
deposits throughout. Yet, however vague the common boundary, how¬
ever largely the materials of the older formation are incorporated in
the newer, the two formations may be clearly discriminated wherever
typically exposed; the Columbia loam is always argillaceous and silty,
soft in tint as well as in texture, smooth to the touch, loess-like,
made up exclusively of finely comminuted materials, and brown or buff
in color; while the Lafayette is sandy, harsh in tint and texture,
friable, commonly pebbly, and orange red or red in color, particularly
in its upper portion. The deposits are contrasted also in habit of
weathering: the Columbia loam in this region stands in smooth ver¬
tical faces or breaks down in steep slopes, and all the minor forms of
weathering suggest youth and weakness; the Lafayette, on the other
hand, displays the usual massive, semiglazed, rock-like aspect in its
upper portion, while below it breaks up irregularly, and the combina¬
tion of characters in weathered exposures gives an aspect of age and
obduracy to the entire formation. The two deposits, indeed, possess
certain points of similarity, yet they are discriminated by agriculturists
and geologists alike, as readily and reliably as any shale from any sand¬
stone, or any marble from any granite.

Over the crest of the Grand Gulf upland from Woodville westward
12 geol - 28

434

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

to the Mississippi bluffs, the Columbia loam thickens and exposures
of the Lafayette loam become less and less frequent; yet, owing to the
high relief and consequent rapidity of degradation, exposures occur
here and there, even to the very verge of the bluffs. In the interior,
where the later loam is thin and where it contains an element of Lafay¬
ette sand without the Lafayette cementation, the newer mantle is the
weaker and yields the more rapidly to erosion, as illustrated in Fig. 44;
but toward the river the newer mantle is the more tenacious and is
invaded cliietly by sapping along the ravines, particularly at the heads

Fig. 44. — Denudation of the Lafayette sands by modern erosion ; near Laurel Hill, Lousiana.

of the minor drainage ways. So in the region between Loftus Heights
and Woodville the ordinary topographic forms — hill and valley, divide
and waterway, salient and reentrant, cusp and amphitheater — are supple¬
mented by “breaks,” “gulfs,” and “guts” of the local vernacular. The
“ break” is the head of a small retrogressive ravine, a minor water course
gradually eating its way back into the upland; the “gulf” is a magni¬
fied “break ” with precipitous walls, so deep and broad that man may not
stay its progress but stands appalled by its depth and the rapidity with
which it is carried into the highlands by successive storms. Inadequate
illustrations of the “gulfs” of the region are given in Figs. 45 and 4(1?
both mechanically reproduced from photographs. As suggested by these
illustrations, the gulfs may be 50, 100, or even 150 feet in depth, with
vertical walls; as suggested also by the cuts, they represent the usual
manner of invasion and destruction of divides in this region. Origi¬
nally the roads meandered through the valley here, followed the upland

M' GEE.]

“breaks,” “gulfs,” and “guts.”

435

crest there ; but with the growth of the “ gulfs” the upland crests are nar¬
rowed until the traveler might easily toss a pebble from either hand
which would fall 100 feet before striking the bottom of the gulf; and
during each great storm some such narrow pass crumbles away, and
the road must be changed, perhaps for miles. The “gut” is simply a
deep road cut, started sometimes purposely to reduce the grade, some¬
times by designless travel, but deepened by storm-wash, by the smooth¬
ing of gullies in mending the way, and by wheels and hoofs : for the storm

Fig. 45.— Typical “ gulf” exposing the Columbia and Lafayette formations ; near Fort Adams, Missis¬
sippi. Exposure, 90 feet.

carries detritus from the upper part to the lower; as the rain-cut gullies
are filled, either by plow or spade, the material always moves down the
slope; and the trampling of hoofs and tlie crushing of wheels similarly
displace material, and always in the direction of the slope. In most
deposits the precipitous walls would break down as the gorge deep¬
ened; but in the loess or loess-like loam of the Columbia, with which
the Grand Gulf upland is mantled, the walls remain vertical until the

436

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

“guts” are 10, 20, 30, even 40 feet deep, and until leafy branches meet
overhead, transforming the way of the traveler into gloomy caverns.
One of the “guts” of the Loftus Heights region, 3 miles east of Fort
Adams, appears in Fig. 47, which is reproduced from a photograph,
retouched in the foreground.

Fig. 46. — Typical contact between Columbia and Lafayette formations; near Fort Adams, Mississippi.

Exposure, 65 feet; depth, not shown in photograph, 70 feet; total depth of “gulf,” about 18b feet.

Now, in most “breaks,” in all “gulfs,” in many “guts,” the Lafayette
crops out beneath the Columbia loam and the exposures are sufficiently
numerous to show that the formation overlies the whole of the upland
except where the valleys are deepest, and, moreover, that its materials
increase in coarseness and the entire deposit in thickness toward the
great river. In the “gulfs” illustrated in Figs. 45 and 40 the Columbia
loam is 20 to 25 feet in thickness, somewhat pebbly at the base, and
rather sharply demarked from the Lafayette formation, which extends
thence to the bottoms of the exposures, 70 and 110 feet lower. In the
“gut” illustrated in Fig. 47 the newer loam is just cut through, and
the semi -indurated sands of the Lafayette appear in wheel ruts. It is
noteworthy that as the formation thickens it differentiates in a definite
way : The upper part maintains the massive rock-like aspect, the peculiar
case-hardening of weathered surfaces, and the orange-red color; while

MrGEE. j

FEATURES IN SOUTHWESTERN MISSISSIPPI.

437

the lower part becomes stratified, the sands and the clays are separated
in alternating layers, the case-hardening fails, and the color changes
to grays, bulls, and browns, banded with the stratification.

The physical relations of the Lafayette are illustrated in Fig. 48, repro¬
duced from a field sketch representing a cliff in Loftus Heights overlook¬
ing Strieker’s landing (a mile south of Fort Adams, Mississippi). Here
it is a firm sandy loam or loamy sand containing subangular and rounded

Fig. 47. — Typical “gut,” 3 miles east of Fort Adams, Mississippi. Depth, 5 to 35 feet.

pebbles, mainly brown chert, up to 2 inches in diameter, both arranged in
lines and disseminated ; it is brick-red, pinkish gray, and orange in color,
rarely flecked with white. As shown in the diagram, it rests uncou-
formably on the Grand Gulf strata and is in turn uncomformably over-
lain by the Columbia loam, which is here a richly fossiliferous loess.
The physical relation thus illustrated iu the small way is that indicated
by a wide range of phenomena over a wide area to hold iu the large way
in the southwestern counties of Mississippi and the contiguous parishes
of Louisiana.

A A

438

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

In brief, the Lafayette formation, as displayed over and south of the
Grand Gulf hill land in southern Mississippi and northern cis-Mississippi
Louisiana, is a sheet of sandy and somewhat pebbly loam, generally
orange-red in color, perhaps 50 feet in average thickness but thicker
as well as coarser in material toward the river, massive and homogeneous
above but stratified in its lower portion; it rests uncomformably on a
rugose surface of Grand Gulf mudstones, and is trenched to its base and
sometimes cut away over considerable belts along the larger waterways,
and fashioned into a strongly undulating autogenetic configuration ; and
it is uncomformably overlain by a mantle of Columbia loam or loess
with basal pebble beds or sand sheets, deeply in the south and toward
the great river, and less deeply inland until the later mantle feathers
out or lies only in the valleys.

Fia. 48. — Relations of Columbia, Lafayette, and Grand Gulf formations; near Fort Adams, Miss.
1. Loess, fossiliferous above, sandy below, with scattered pebblos derived from the Lafayette toward
base. 2. Massive brick-red loam with chert gravel. 3. Grand Gulf mudstones, with two partly
litliifled semi-quartzite ledges. Exposure, 175 feet.

Passing from the Mississippi marshland toward the higher portion
of the coastal plain along a more easterly line, the characteristics of the
Lafayette formation are again displayed. The New Orleans and North¬
eastern Railway traverses the marshland from the natural levee upon
which New Orleans is built, crossing on trestles the part lying so low
as to be submerged (Lake Pontchartrain) and then gradually rising
toward the scarp of an undulating pine-clad plain about the eastern ex¬
tremity of the Grand Gulf ridge. At Nicholson, 3 or 4 miles from Pearl
River, the flat marshland configuration ends and the undulating sur¬
face of autogenetic sculpture begins. This scarp differs from the simple
one of Baton Rouge in that it is deeply crenulate, each divide forming
a salient, each minor waterway marking a deep reentrant. The upland
surface also differs from the an togenetically incised plane of Baton Rouge
in that it is completely invaded by drainage and transformed into laby¬
rinthine crests, valleys, spurs, and amphitheaters, the whole undulating
gently in soft contoured profiles in which convex curves prevail. The
contrast between the marshland and the more elevated lowland is
strong; and the configuration of the scarp and the interior forms alike
indicate that the higher surface is but partly mantled by, and that its
culminating points rise above, the sheet of Columbia loam — the older
formation rises above the newer one, which merely overlaps its flanks.

MrGEE-1

FEATURES IN SOUTHEASTERN MISSISSIPPI.

439

The older formation is a predominantly orange loam, commonly mass¬
ive above, but frequently stratified and sometimes cross-bedded with
intercalations of clay below. In general the deposit is more argillaceous
than its homologue near the Mississippi, and in general it is more dis¬
tinctly stratified, while its pebbles are smaller and rarer. Moreover, its
color is softer, orange prevailing rather than orange red.

North and east of Nicholson the orange loam is displayed in every
roadway cutting, roadside gully, and storm runnel, just as it is dis¬
played in the region about Laurel Hill; and as usual its upper portion
is homogeneous, massive, semiglazed, and flecked with white and cream.
The pebbles remain rare ami small to Highland, where rounded and
subangular fragments of chert rather suddenly become abundant, the
matrix remaining practically unchanged. Here, indeed, the gravel is
so abundant that it is.largely used for railway ballasting.

About Nicholson the relations of the orange loam to the later Colum¬
bia loam are well displayed. On Leaf River and its tributaries, notably
about Hattiesburg, the relations of the orange loam to the “second bot¬
tom” loams of the riversides, and also to the older Grand Gulf mud¬
stones are well illustrated. Leaf River meanders through a flood-plain
built of stratified sand and silt rising 20 or 25 feet above low-water
level; then follows the “second bottom ” terrace, rising 20 or 30 feet
higher, half a mile to a mile in width, built of homogeneous drab loam
grading down into stratified silt and sand with occasional pebbles; there
is then a third terrace, 40 or 50 feet higher than the second and built
of identical materials; and above this rises the general upland, 100 to
175 feet above the river level. Now, the modern flood-plain deposits
rest sometimes on the “second bottom” loams and again on the Grand
Gulf mudstones, and rarely at higher levels on the Lafayette, while the
uplands overlooking the waterways are commonly sheeted with the
orange-tinted loams of the Lafayette, save on the steeper slopes and
along some ravines.

An interesting contact between the “second bottom” deposit and
the orange-tinted loam is found at Mineral Springs, 0 miles west of
Hattiesburg, on a tributary of the Leaf River. Here the later deposit
consists chiefly of stratified sand with layers of clay and silt in its lower
portion, the whole continuous with the broader “second bottoms” devel¬
oped along Leaf River, although, as is usual along the smaller streams,
the material is exceptionally sandy. In and near the stream channel
these stratified sands contain large numbers of leaf impressions and
more or less perfectly preserved leaves, together with twigs and larger
fragments of wood, reaching G or 8 inches in diameter. The leaves are
of the species now growing in the same vicinity; the condition of pres¬
ervation of the wood is much like that of the forest bed found in glaci¬
ated regions; the spring evidently gathers its water from this stratum,
and derives its chalybeate character from ferrugination effected through
the acids set free in the slowly decomposing vegetal matter. These

440

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

sands and silts rest on sandy loam of tlie prevailing white-flecked
orange tint and case-hardening habit, except, in and near the stream
channel, w 're they rest on characteristic Grand Gulf mudstones, and
it is evident that the vegetal matter is generally decomposed above the
permeable Lafayette loam, but was largely preserved over the imper¬
meable mudstones until invaded by the rapid modern erosion extend¬
ing over all of eastern Mississippi.

On generalizing the various exposures in this vicinity it appears that
the Grand Gulf terrane was long ago sculptured into a strongly undu¬
lating plain ; that upon this rugose surface the Lafayette was laid down
man tie- wise, thickest in depressions, thinnest over the eminences; that
the mantle was in turn invaded by erosion, nearly along old lines,
which continued until half or two-thirds of its mass was carried away,
until every major and most of the minor waterways cut through into the
Grand Gulf mudstones, and until this subterrane was exposed on many
slopes ; and that finally the deeper valleys were lined by “ second bottom ”
loams rising scant halfway up the slopes and covering but a tithe of the
area.

North of the Grand Gulf ridge in western Mississippi the relief dimin¬
ishes and the mantle of Columbia loam thickens, and accordingly the
exposures of the Lafayette occur rarely; yet, in all the deeper “gulfs”
toward the divides, the orange- tinted sandy loam may be seen, sometimes
sharply uncomformable with, but generally separable with difficulty
from, the basal pebble bed of the Columbia. From the scattered expo¬
sures the deposit is found to maintain the characteristics displayed over
the Grand Gulf terrane well toward the divide north of Homochitto
Eiver, save that its pebbles are notably larger and more abundant. From
the composition of the Columbia pebble bed, too, gradual change in
composition of the older deposit maybe inferred; this pebble bed thick¬
ens, its constituent nodules and fragments of chert become larger, the
element of sand in the lower portion becomes more abundant, until at
Natchez the basal bed of the Columbia attains a thickness of 100 feet, of
which one-fifth or one-fourth consists of gravel. It is noteworthy that
in the Percus, Buffalo, and Homochitto basins the Lafayette appears to
be trenched quite to its base, occasionally exposing Grand Gulf mud¬
stones in the channels.

Over the divide between the Homochitto and Bayou Pierre the brown
loams of the Columbia continue to prevail, but in so attenuated condi¬
tion that exposures of the Lafayette are moderately abundant, and of
such character as to illustrate the stratigraphic relations to Columbia
above and Grand Gulf below. Thus, in “rocky hill,” 2 miles north
of Washington, a road-cutting displays fossiliferous loess 10 or 12 feet
thick, grading into argillaceous loam, pebbly below, 4 or 5 feet thick ;
beneath these a bed of stratified chert gravel in a matrix of orange
red sandy loam with white flecks, 5 feet thick, resting unconformably on
semilithified greenish gray mudstones of the Grand Gulf. Another cut-

McGEE.j

FEATURES IN SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI.

441

ting a mile farther northward displays typical Lafayette loam of the
usual massive, semiglazed aspect, pinkish brown in color, with dissemi¬
nated pebbles, overlain by loess with gravel bed at base. Again, half a
mile north of Fayette, there are good exposures displaying 5 to 15 feet
of rather sandy and friable loess, pebbly at the base, and resting with
local as well as general unconformity upon orange-red and brown loam
of the usual aspect, containing disseminated pebbles and sometimes
stratified in its lower portion; in turn this lies with decided uncon¬
formity on Grand Gulf mudstones. Four miles north of Fayette there
is yet more instructive exposure, in which the unconformity between the
Lafayette and the Grand Gulf is strongly marked, and in which, more¬
over, the former deposit is stratified, one of its beds (2 feet in thickness)
consisting of impalpably fine comminuted silica or siliceous clay, smooth,
massive, structureless, and snow-white in color. This is the southern¬
most exposure of an element which is of increasing importance north¬
ward.

The last two sections illustrate in detail what the dozens of exposures
over this divide illustrate in more general fashion with respect to the
relations of the three formations displayed. The Grand Gulf surface
was deeply sculptured and rugose, abounding in rocky ridges and cliffs,
formed by reason of high relief and general obduracy combined with
heterogeneity in materials; this highly rugose surface was mantled with
the Lafayette to a thickness unknown, yet apparently exceeding that
displayed farther southward ; next, as on Leaf River, half the volume of
the Lafayette was carried away — it was trenched to its base by every
river, every considerable streamlet, and frequently cut through over the
old ridges and cliff scarps; then the Columbia loam was spread man¬
tle-wise over the doubly complex surface, but has in its turn been so
deeply invaded by erosion lines that its base is frequently displayed.

Bayou Pierre is a sluggish stream beginning and ending within the
Columbia terrane, and always charged with fine mud derived from the
Columbia loam; and so it has not cut through its parent formation,
and throughout its immediate valley the Lafayette is completely con¬
cealed; but within a few miles northward the orange loams reappear in
increased thickness, and are conspicuous in numberless exposures over
the elevated and rather narrow divide between the sluggish stream on
the south and the active and potent Big Black on the north.

Within 3 miles north of Port Gibson on the Rocky Springs road the
local relief reaches 150 feet, and appalling “gulfs,” such as those of the
Fort Adams region, invade the uplands ; and, j ust as about Fort Adams,
these chasms display the structure to depths of 50 and even 100 feet.
A typical gulf is represented in Fig. 49, which is a mechanical reproduc¬
tion of a photograph. Here the Columbia brown loam is 12 to 15 feet
thick, becoming sandy and more pebbly below ; its basal portion changes
completely within a few inches, passing into massive orange red sandy

442

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

loam with disseminated pebbles, structureless for 5 feet, then gradually
becoming stratified. As indicated by the illustration, the amphitheater
pushes back into the divide chiefly by sapping, for the basal part of the
Lafayette is friable; where the sapping is rapid, the massive summital
portion of the Lafayette and the subjacent Pleistocene loam cleave off
together and vertical walls are formed, as in the center of the cut; while,
if the sapping is slower, the partially cemented summital ledge of the
Lafayette endures, and the softer loam melts away under the contact
with the raindrops, as indicated in the left of the cut.

Fig. 49.— Columbia and Lafayette formations, as exposed in a typical “gulf;” near Port Gibson,

Mississippi. Exposure, 50 feet.

It frequently happens in this region that the minor drainage line out¬
lined on the Columbia loam cut dowu in their lower reaches to the fri¬
able basal portion of the Lafayette, when sapping begins and a gulf runs
up the water way, exposing the Lafayette, with a bare veneer of Columbia
above; when the soft contoured configuration is replaced by a sharp
contoured one, in which the water way is reshaped and bounded by
precipitous clifts. A gulf at the head of a ravine thus conditioned is

MfQEE.]

FEATURES IN SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI.

443

illustrated in Fig. 50, which is also a mechanical reproduction of a
photograph, the locality being 5 miles north of Tort Gibson on the
Rocky Springs road. The peculiar erosion forms displayed in this cut
illustrate well the obduracy of the summital ledge of the Lafayette;
it is without lines of weakness, either vertical or horizontal, and the
raindrops and running streams gradually carve it into miniature pin¬
nacles, crests, and spurs which sun and wind do not affect and which
storms invade but slowly, so that they stand long unless undermined

FiO.50. — Erosion forms of the Lafayette formation ; 5 miles north of Port Gibson, jMississippi. Expos¬
ure, 12 feet.

and carried away by sapping; and as the material stands its iron goes
into new combinations, and the slender pinnacles and cusps, like the
broad surfaces, become semiglazed or case-hardened, whereby they are
strengthened still more and preserved still longer.

In the “old fields” on this divide, as on the greater Grand Gulf ridge,
the loam may wash away, leaving a surface of obdurate Lafayette sandy
loam to form an intractable and infertile soil. The configuration of the
surface often left over acres as the fertile loams melt away under sue-

444

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

cessive storms is illustrated in a direct reproduction, forming Fig. 51,
of a photograph taken 5 miles south of Rocky Springs. Here, as in
many other cases, the Columbia and Lafayette may be demarked only
with difficulty; there is a zoue of a foot or more through which the
materials intergrade, though beyond the bounds of this zone the de¬
posits may be distinct as marble and granite or as shale and limestone;
but the obscure contact plane is sought out and laid bare by the agen¬
cies of erosion.

Although the north fork of Bayou Pierre is the longer its valley is
much the narrower, and it is properly a tributary of the southern and

Fig. 51. — Lafayette erosion forms; 5 miles south of Rocky Springs, Mississippi.

middle forks, cleaving the main divide between the bayou drainage and
that of the Big Black. Partly by reason of its greater length and partly
because it lies half way up the general divide and thus has high decliv¬
ity, it has carved its valley quite through the Lafayette deposits, reveal¬
ing the Grand Gulf rocks in its own channel and in the channels of
its minor spring-fed tributaries. North of it the land lies high and the
friable basal beds of the Lafayette are less perfectly protected by the
Columbia mantle than toward the south, and iu consequence the surface
is more broken than ever by a rapidly growing autogenetic sculpture
running back into the divides in appalling “gulfs” and “breaks;” the

UrGEE.]

FEATURES IN SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI.

445

roads are the most serpentine imaginable, meandering in labyrinthine
valleys and following sinuous divides, and the modern erosion supplant¬
ing the old is literally taking the country; the road is encroached upon
from both sides, and the “old fields” are denuded by the acre, leaving
mazes of pinnacles divided by a complex network of runnels glaring red
toward the sun and sky in strong contrast to the rich verdure of the
hillsides never deforested; the plantation mansions and “quarters” are

Fig. 52 — .Lafayette erosion forms; Rocky Springs, Mississippi.

undermined, and whole villages, once the home of wealth and luxury,
are being swept away at the rate of acres for each year. The once flour¬
ishing village of Rocky Springs, together with the stratigraphic suc¬
cession beneath its site, are fairly illustrated in Figs. 52 and 53, which
are mechanical reproductions from photographs. In the thousands of
exposures of which these are types, the features of the Lafayette for¬
mation and its relations to the Columbia mantle are well displayed.

It is noteworthy that throughout this region of high local relief the
usual massive summital member of the Lafayette fails. Commonly
the entire thickness of the formation displayed in the “gulfs” and gorges
consists of stratified sand and gravel with intercalated sheets of clay
and loam; the stratified sands and even the coarse gravel merge to an
exceptional extent with the Columbia deposits; and the grouped ex¬
posures indicate that while the ante-Pleistocene surface was rugose the

446

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

contours were rounded rather than broken by angles, as in those regions
in which an obdurate upper ledge protects the more friable lower mem¬
bers. 1 1 is notewort hy, too, that the pebbles hereabout while of the same
material as in the south, are much larger and much less worn, the
dimensions reaching 5 or 0 inches and the angles sometimes being barely
rounded. It is noteworthy also that while the actual thickness of the
formation may not be determined, there is every indication of increase in
volume despite the extensive erosion to which it has been subjected.

Fig. 53. — Lafayette erosion forms ; Rocky Springs, Mississippi.

One and a half miles north of and fully 175 feet above the northern
branch of Bayou Pierre there is a series of u gulfs” and gorges of ex¬
ceptional magnitude displaying the following succession : (1) stratified
silty loam, buff in color, weathering into blunt pinnacles, 5 to 12 feet;

(2) silty saud, light buff or whitish, containing few pebbles, 2 to 4 feet;

(3) loess unusually firm in texture, richly fossiliferous, 3 to 6 feet; (4)

M'OEE.]

FEATURES IN SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI.

447

clayey loess with loess-kindchen of irregular and fantastic forms, con¬
taining a few small pebbles, 2 to 4 feet; (5) great beds of gravel and
cross-stratified sand, commonly brick-red, the pebbles being mainly of
broken chert nodules with larger coralline clierty masses and fragments
of Grand Gulf mudstone and quartzite, 20 to 30 feet; (0) Grand Gulf
mudstones. The only distinct unconformity observed in this section is
that between the pebbly sands of the Lafayette and the Grand Gulf;
for at this altitude the Columbia consists partly of rearranged Lafayette
materials, and thus the two formations intergrade. Between this point
and the Big Black, no exposures of the Grand Gulf are known except
at the very bottom of a railway cut at Iugleside, where it is directly
overlain by the basal sands and gravels of the Columbia.

If the numberless exposures over the Bayou Pierre-Big Black divide
be summarized, several significant features appear: The composition
differs materially from that prevailing farther southward in the greater
abundance and size of the contained pebbles; the structure differs in
that the massive phase so generally prevalent at the summit of the for¬
mation is seldom seen, and in that the greater part of the deposit ex¬
posed is bedded, discontinuously but none the less distinctly; the color
differs in that the prevailing orange or orange red of the south is re¬
placed by browns, brick-reds, grays, and drabs, with some pinks and
whites laid in lines indicating the stratification; the volume appears to
differ in possessing greater thickness ; the formation surface differs in
that it gives indication of more pronounced erosion; and the structural
relation differs in that the deposit commonly grades into superincum¬
bent Pleistocene loam of the Columbia epoch. Generalization of these
resemblances and differences and careful consideration of the bearing
of each suggest that only a part of the differences are antecedent, and
that the others are consequent upon them. The episodes suggested by
the physical relations are, first, prolonged erosion of a Grand Gull
terrane whereby the rugose surface was developed; submergence and
mantling of this surface; emergence and tattering of this Lafayette
mantle, including the cutting of trenches entirely through it, and also the
nearly or complete removal of its surface; and then the Columbia sub¬
mergence, with the deposition of the Columbia loam mantle-wise
upon the greatly eroded surface of the Lafayette sands. In this view
of the succession of episodes it would appear that the absence of the
suinmital ledge of the Lafayette is due to exceptional ante-Pleistocene
erosion, and that the merging of the Lafayette and Columbia deposits
is due to the absence of the prevailing obdurate stratum to protect the
friable basal sands as the advancing waves of the Columbia episode
beat upon the sinking shores. The exceptional thickness (particularly
of the lower portion) and the exceptional size and number of pebbles
are undoubtedly, however, antecedent features to be explained as the
multifarious plieuomena of the widespread formation fall into order,
but even at this stage these features may safely be connected with the

448

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

proximity of the Big Black, which is the weakling progeny of a potent
progenitor once reaching far into the Appalachians through the basins
of the modern Tennessee and Cumberland.

In central Mississippi there is a considerable area in which the Big
Black and the Pearl approach, and in which, by reason of the propinquity
of two considerable rivers (originally brought into propinquity by weak¬
ness of the Eocene rocks), exposures are frequent despite the fact that
this is the bottom of the trough bounded by the Grand Gulf ridge on the
south and the Lignitic triangular ridge on the north. These exposures
are, however, chiefly interesting in that they indicate attenuation of the
Lafayette deposits without conspicuous change in their general char¬
acter. The massive upper member which fails over the divide south of
the lower stretch of the Big Black reappears, and the stratified lower
portion thins and sometimes disappears; the characteristic texture
and the massive, rock-like asjiect recur and the disseminated small
chert pebbles and the flecking with spots of pink and white are as dis¬
tinctive as on the southerly slope of the Grand Gulf ridge or on Leaf

Fig. 54.— Relations of Columbia and Lafayette formations, near Jackson, Mississippi. 1. Columbia
brown loam, sandy and pebbly at base. 2. Lafayette sands. 3. Vicksburg-Jackson limestone.

River. The only noteworthy difference aside from the attenuation (par¬
ticularly of the lower member) is a redder color (brick-red being com¬
mon) and more frequent cementation by iron.

At the sanitarium of Coopers Wells (near Raymond) a prominent ridge
is crowned by red gravelly loam and sand, frequently cemented into a
firm ferruginous conglomerate; and midway between Raymond and
Jackson there are frequent exposures in which limonite nodules occur in
such abundance as to stimulate, albeit fruitlessly, the prospector.' The
ferrugination is evidently related to the subterrane : thus, in a section
displayed in a deep gully 4 miles southwest of Jackson the ferrugina¬
tion is found to culminate at the contact of the Lafayette and the sub¬
jacent argillaceous limestone, particularly toward the feather edge of the
former deposit , as indicated in Fig. 54. This section is of further interest
in that it illustrates the relation of the prevailing mantle of Columbia
loam and the discontinuity of the Lafayette, which appears in this region
to be trenched along all major and most minor waterways and also along
some lines not now occupied by drainage.

On both banks of Pearl River at Jackson, and along the banks of the
Big Black, the Columbia loam conceals or replaces the Lafayette, but
within 2 miles north of Jackson the brick-red sandy loam reappears in

MrGEE.]

FEATURES IN CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI.

449

its usual aspect in road cuts and gullies; and toward tlie crest of the
divide thence for 50 miles northeastward there is no mile without expos¬
ures of the deposit, though happily without the scores and hundreds
of the Rocky Hill region. Yet the exposures are exceedingly monoto¬
nous: there is a mantle of Columbia loam a few feet thick, generally
demarked sharply but containing lines of sand and Lafayette gravel
at its base; then follows brick red, orange red, or red brown loam,
flecked with white and dotted with scattered pebbles, massive and
rocklike above, often becoming mottled below, and displaying obscure
stratification in deeper exposures; and only rarely is its base exposed,
for all the larger streams are flanked with belts of brown loam so deep
and so broad that the weaker terrane below is not revealed.

North of the Big Black River the Lafayette formation increases in
thickness and in continuity, and gradually differentiates in such manner
that the region extending from central Mississippi on the south to the
Ohio River on the north, and from the Mississippi bluffs on the west to
the Tennessee River on the east, may be regarded as the typical terrane
of the formation. True, it is here, as elsewhere, profoundly eroded; it
is nearly or quite cut away all along the bluff rampart overlooking the
Mississippi, and trenched nearly or quite to its base by many secondary
streams; and it is mantled for two-thirds of its area by the Columbia
deposits; yet, partly by reason of the appalling modern erosion due to
deforesting and abandonment of fields, it is displayed in hundreds of
thousands of exposures, abundantly over the uplands and more rarely
along the rivers, whereby its features may easily be ascertained.

The first known exposure in the bluff rampart above the Big Black is
uear Yazoo, where brick-red pebbly loam, markedly distinct from the
prevailing Columbia mantle, crops out near the bases of the bluffs. It
reappears, midway between the rampart and the Big Black, near Lexing¬
ton, in bipartite condition, comprising the usual brick-red, white-flecked
loam above and interstratified brick red sand and gray or white siliceous
clay below, the upper member ranging from 5 to 10 feet in thickness
and the lower exceeding 20 feet, and resting uncomformably on calcare¬
ous clays of the Claiborne. These exposures are noteworthy as indicat¬
ing more clearly than those south of the Big Black River the beginning
of that bipartition which becomes pronounced in northern Mississippi
and Tennessee. Orange, red and brown pebbly loams, unquestionably
representing the upper member of the formation, appear occasionally
in the rampart thence northward to Malmaison; and within 5 miles
inland, notably about Carrollton, the Columbia mantle is so thin that
the brick-red sands crop out in every gully, while the stratified lower
member appears in every deeper cutting.

In the upland overlooking the Big Black the exposures are much
more frequent — indeed no mile is without its display of features of this
and associated formations. An instructive section is revealed in a

12 GrEOL - 29

450

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

great gully 5 miles south of Durant, as illustrated in Fig. 55, drawn
from a field sketch. Here the Lafayette conforms to a hill made up
of calcareous and sandy claystones, probably Claiborne, and exhibits
the usual semiglazed aspect in its upper portion with definite bed¬
ding below; while the Columbia loam in like manner conforms to the
Lafayette surface and is evidently made up in part of Lafayette ma¬
terials, principally on tlie lower slope, where it is diversified by bands
of red sand running out into it a few yards and then disappearing —
the relation here being exactly similar to that displayed by the Colum¬
bia and Potomac formations on the eastern side of Chesapeake Bay.1

Thence northward, as the general surface rises toward the Lignitic
ridge, the Columbia mantle thins and the exposures multiply;
and at McGee and A Vest stations, as well as about Beatty, on the
Illinois Central Railroad, and still more frequently along the circuitous
and hilly ways followed by wagon roads, the exposures revealing the
bipartition are innumerable. Two miles northwest of Durant a 20-
foot cut displays 10 feet of brick-red sandy loam, with interstratified
sand and siliceous clay below, some of the latter being snow-white; a
mile farther northward the massive upper member contains a silicified
tree trunk; over the divide south of Peachavalla Creek the peculiar

Fig. 55. —Relations between Columbia and Lafayette formations, near Durant, Mississippi.. 1. Brown
loam of the Columbia, rather sandy, containing chert pebbles evidently derived from the Lafayette
toward base, where also it is interleaved witli layers of rearranged Lafayette sand evidently formed
by the Columbia waves in advancing over sea clitfs of the older formations. 2. Lafayette sand, mas¬
sive and brick-red above, interstratified with white and gray below. 3. Ferruginous claystones of
the Claiborne.

quartzites of Hilgard’s Siliceous Claiborne form rugged knolls and ridges,
and these are half mantled, first by the Lafayette and again by the
Columbia, both mantles being tattered in such manner that sometimes
one, sometimes the other, and more rarely both together, half conceal
the harder rocks; but wherever the Lafayette is well displayed the
bipartition appears, and here and there snow-white bands of siliceous
clay, perhaps only an inch but sometimes a foot in thickness, gleam out
to dazzle the eyes of the traveler. About Vaiden the hills are brick-red
beneath the stunted second growth forests, and the obdurate upper
member of the Lafayette, which forms their crests, is hard and smooth
as a brick pavement; yet in every deeper gully the variegated banding,
with occasional snow-white lines, is revealed. This is a region of strong
relief ; the autogenetic streams bifurcate again and again, and each
branch sends out scores of minor arms, so that the drainage is perfect;
and between the frequent ravines the narrow labyrinthine divides rise

1 7th Annual Report U. S. Geol. Survey, 1888, Pis. XLiii and XUV.

MrGEE-l

FEATURES IN CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI.

451

50 to 100 and even 150 feet. Over all there was once a thin mantle
of Pleistocene loam, but this is mainly gone save toward the Big Black
River, which is here flanked by a deposit of brown loam with sandy
base, evidently a hybrid partaking at once of the characters of the west¬
ern Mississippi Columbia, and the eastern Mississippi “second bottoms.”
And the features characterizing the vicinity of Vaiden are represented
in every mile northward nearly or quite to the Yalabusha.

The history recorded in the Columbia, the Lafayette, and the sub-
terrane remains essentially the same as in the south : There is a deeply
sculptured subterrane, Neocene mudstones in the south, here the
silico-lignitic clays of the Eocene; then follows the Lafayette, spread
mantlewise here as there, but here consisting of two divisions, the
lower stratified member varying in thickness and continuity according
to the subjacent configuration, and the upper massive member more
uniform in thickness and more extensive in area; and this older mantle
was erosion-rent in all directions before the later and final mantle of
the Columbia was spread over the land. Now here, as in the south, the
drainage ways first outlined on the Eocene surface, and afterward modi¬
fied by interaction between autogenetic conditions and structural con¬
ditions, were generally chosen again after the Lafayette mantling,
and the waterways thus resurrected were frequently chosen once more
after the recession of the Pleistocene waters; so that in general the
present drainage is twice resurrected, yet coincides fairly with the early
prototype. Here and there, however, indications of modification in the
drainage systems appear; here and there the Eocene strata are deeply
trenched by a modern stream in such manner as to indicate that the
modern stream is either larger than or differently placed from its proto¬
type; here and there the Lafayette is displayed in stream cliffs in
such manner as to give like indication with respect to the relations
between the post -Lafayette and the post-Columbia drainage; while
again the Lafayette deposits are absent from considerable belts not
now traversed by modern streams, and these examples give a similar
indication. One of these examples is found about Winona, which is
located on the head waters of a small stream near the common water-
parting of the Big Black toward the south, the Tallahatchie toward the
west, and the Yalabusha toward the north; yet there is here a broad
zone in which the deeper gullies and artificial excavations penetrating
the Columbia loam expose only the brown and often ferruginous sandy
clays of the Eocene.

Two miles northwest of Winona the Lafayette again appears in
typical character, the brick-red sand or sandy loam, jointed obliquely,
semiglazed, rocklike, massive, forms nearly vertical walls in all hilltop
cuts, notably at the parting of the Carrollton and Duck Hill roads ; while
in the lower portions of these cuttings and in the lower exposures strati¬
fied red and gray sands with occasional snow-white bands extend to the
bases of exposures. In these cuttings and in others toward Eskridge
and Duck Hill, it is noteworthy that the white flecks and streaks char-

452

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

acteristic of tlie upper member of the deposit in otlier regions appear
in increasing number; and all the way to Duck Hill the Lafayette
prevails over the uplands, save on a very few of the summits in which
the ferruginous Eocene clays appear, and the snow-white bands ever
increase in number and thickness.

Certain other subordinate features of the formation also characterize
this region. Thus, from the Big Black to the Yalabusha the pebbles
diminish in number and size until they become always inconspicuous
and entirely disappear from some exposures. At the same time the color
of the upper member deepens to dark brick -red and red brown. More¬
over, the ferrugination progressively increases; the massive upper mem¬
ber is frequently cemented by ferruginous matter to such an extent as
to clink under the hammer and when carried into waterways by sapping
to form pebbles and bowlders that long resist stream wear; the stratified
basal portion is often marked with plates and pipes of sandironstone,
sometimes so abundant and so obdurate as partially to protect the mass
from modern erosion ; and the contacts of the two members as well as those
between both and the subjacent Eocene or the superjacent Columbia
mantle are sometimes marked with limonite nodules of such size and
abundance as to attract the prospector. Many of the higher summits
over the Big Black- Yalabusha divide are rounded knolls rising above
the highest level of the Columbia mantle, and almost without exception
liese knolls are crowned with ferruginated masses of the Lafayette
sand.

The Yalabusha basin is the product of autogenetic carving of the
western slope of the Liguitic ridge stretching through northern Missis¬
sippi; the Eocene strata are generally obdurate but heterogenous, and
give a rugose yet somewhat erratic configuration; the surface was
mantled and its contours softened by the Lafayette, but as this de¬
posit in turn yielded to erosion it underwent local ferrugination in such
manner as sometimes to accentuate the antecedent erratic relief; and
although almost the entire basin was afterward overspread by the
Columbia loam, this mantle was thin and, partaking, of the sandy char¬
acter of the substrata, yielding with exceptional readiness to post-
Columbia erosion. Thus the present configuration is strongly individu¬
alized; the valleys of the main stream and its scores of tributaries are
broad and deep; the divides are crenulate m plan and strongly undu¬
lating, even bluntly serrate in profile, frequently rising in conspicuous
cusps, which are commonly near main water-partings, but sometimes
rise near the main waterways, so that the general effect gives the
impression of a miniature ancient water-carved mountain system, with
the peaks and crests blunted and the valleys and gorges half drowned;
but so nearly did the level of the Columbia waters coincide with the
highest surface that only the culminating spurs formed islands, and these
are sharpened by wave work about their bases, while their slightly lower
neighbors were wave-swept and still further blunted. So when the
basin is viewed from a commanding summit on either the southern or

M'GEE.J

FEATURES IN CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI.

453

northern rim, it is found to be a labyrinth of broad valleys and a maze
of steep-sloped hills, with here and there a rounded knob rising- from
the apex of a broad dome to 50 or 100 feet above the general upper level.
One of the most conspicuous of these culminating knobs is Duck Hill,
but there are a score of others of nearly equal note.

In traversing the Yalabusha basin, exposures of the Lafayette may
be found in hundreds, chiefly, as usual, in the gullies and gorges of
modern erosion; and in these hundreds of exposures the local features
of the formation may readily be seen. The bipartition persists; the
upper member remains massive and rocklike, brick-red, flecked with
white, yet its materials are more sandy and its mass even more deeply
ferruginated than south of the divide; the lower member remains
stratified, with some bedding planes ferruginated, yet the snow-white
layers are thicker and more numerous than before (3 miles northwest
of Eskridge, 2 miles south of Duck Hill, and 3 miles east of Grenada,
snow-white beds of siliceous clay 5 to 10 feet thick have been prospect¬
ed for pottery material) ; the pebbles are still further diminished in num¬
ber and size and frequently fail, while the thickness of the formation
evidently increases to such an extent that, despite the increasing relief,
exposures of the obdurate Eocene strata are not common. From the
hundreds of exposures, too, the relations of the three visible terranes
may be perceived. Before the Lafayette was deposited, the surface
was even more rugose than to-day; before the Columbia loam was de¬
posited, one-lmlf or two-thirds of the Lafayette mantle was carried
away; before white settlement, one- tenth or one-third of the Columbia
was removed; since the abandonment of the “ old fields,” half as much
more lias gone.

Toward its western extremity the water-parting between the Yala¬
busha and Yocona basins is cleft by the Tillatoba, along the main
stem and minor branches of which there are numberless exposures of
the Lafayette. These are noteworthy chiefly in that the ferrugina-
tion is less than toward the interior, in that the pebbles are more abund¬
ant and larger, and in that stratification is more characteristic, appar¬
ently for the reason that the upper massive member was more frequently
carried away before the Columbia mantling. There is an exposure of
pebbly brick-red loam, undoubtedly representing the Lafayette, at the
base of the rampart overlooking the Tallahatchie delta, a mile south of
the Tillatoba at Charleston ; there are half a dozen similar exposures
along the rampart between this stream and the Yocona ; over the main
Yalabusha- Yocona divide farther eastward there are a dozen or score
of good exposures of the Lafayette for every mile; and the characteris¬
tics displayed throughout the Yalabusha basin are maintained, save that
the deposit (chiefly the lower member) attenuates over the higher lands
and save that the ferrugination is even more complete — great masses
of sandironstone, often many tons in weight, lie along the higher crests
and crown culminating knobs. In short, in configuration, in number of

454

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

exposures, and in features exposed, the Yocona basin essentially dupli¬
cates that of the Yalabusha. The only noteworthy changes in charac¬
ter of the Lafayette comprise thickening of the lower member and in¬
crease in the number of intercalated layers ot white siliceous clay.
Sometimes these snow white beds are several feet or even yards in
thickness; but commonly, as in the numberless typical exposures about
Water Valley, they are thin bands marking the sides of the immense
gullies which have undermined half the town and completely ruined
scores of farms, diverting the roads until the way of the traveler is so
devious that no citizen can direct his course to the next town.

In this vicinity the “gulfs,” “ breaks,” and “ guts” of the Fort Adams
region are replaced on the face of the country and in local vernacular
by “gullies.” Here the Columbia mantle is thin and triable, for it con¬
sists chiefly of rearranged Lafayette sands, mixed with a generally
less abundant foreign loam ; the massive upper member of the Lafay¬
ette is sandy, and, except where ferruginated, friable ; and in conse¬
quence the autogenetic ravines advance into the divides in V shaPed
gashes rather than amphitheaters, and the fairly homogeneous materials
are carried away by the erosion of steep slopes rather than by sapping.
These gullies are enormous; they have taken a fifth of the land within a
quarter ot a century, and are growing with ever-increasing rapidity;
already they have gone beyond the abandoned fields in which they
started, and are invading the woodlands.

A typical exposure of the Yalabusha- Yocona divide is that mechanic¬
ally reproduced from a photograph in Fig. 5G, illustrating a 20-foot road¬
side gully 3 miles northwest of Water Valley. The massive superior
member of the formation is shown at the right; the stratified inferior
member extends from the surface to the bottom of the gully at the left.
Unhappily photographic art does not reproduce the brilliant and dis¬
tinctive colors characterizing this strongly individualized formation.
The upper member is deep brick-red; most of the heavier layers below
are orange-red, sometimes brownish, and rarely gray; while the finer
lines are white as fresh-fallen snow and dazzle the eyes of the be¬
holder.

The divides bounding the basin of the Yalabusha are lines and
congeries of blunted crests and peaks, and the profiles are convex
upward, save over the higher crests ; but the divide between the Yocona
and the Tallahatchie is of different character. Half way from Taylor
to Oxford, and again half way from Oxford to Abbeville, the roads run
on a broad, sensibly level plain, incised here and there by sharp cut
ravines, and now and then by rounded knobs, though in general bear¬
ing the impression of topographic youth rather than the deep maturity
displayed farther southward. The primary reason for this configuration
is to be sought in the conditions effecting the original distribution
of drainage on the Eocene surface; a secondary reason is to be found
in the consequent (at least in part) greater uniformity, of the Lafayette

MTJEE.]

FEATURES IN NORTHERN MISSISSIPPI.

455

mantle, and in its exceptional preservation by tlie superior obdurate
member; and a tertiary reason is to be found in the Pleistocene wave
action, by which some irregularities were planed down while others were
filled up.

In consequence of the exceptionally smooth configuration, exposures
are less common over this divide than over the neighboring water part¬
ings toward the north and toward the south; yet there is no mile with¬
out one or more gullies revealing the substructure to depths of 10 to 50
feet. These exposures, too, show that the bipartition beginning 150
miles southward is continuous and is more trenchant than ever. The

Fig. 56. — Structure of the Lafayette formation, near Water Valley, Miss. Exposure, 20 feet.

upper member remains massive and rock-like, though consisting chiefly
of sand and commonly devoid of pebbles, retains the brick-red color, and
is frequently flecked with white; the lower member is more definitely
stratified than ever, though frequently cross-bedded, and the snow-
white sheets are numerous, as at Water Valley, and frequently thick,
as at Duck Hill or Grenada; while the junction between the members is
frequently marked by apparent unconformity, sometimes by a zone of
pellets and pebbles of white siliceous clay, or here and there by a zone
of pseudo-breccia consisting of angular fragments of laminated white

456

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

clay and associated sands imbedded in a matrix of brick-red sand run¬
ning into the upper member. A typical pseudo- unconformity is imper¬
fectly represented in Fig. 57, which is a mechanical reproduction of a pho¬
tograph, showing a gully 4 miles southeast of Oxford. This section
measurably illustrates the misleading character of the pseudo-uncon¬
formity; true, the superior member is generally distinct in texture and
structure from the inferior one, but toward the left the basal portion of
the superior member grades in the usual manner into obscurely strati¬
fied sand marked by snow-white lines, while the line of apparent uncon¬
formity soon dies out. In this, as in many other cases, it is evident
from careful examination of the section that the pseudo-unconformity
marks, not the end of one episode and the beginning of another, but
simply a local shifting in the currents, and consequently a local change

Fig. 57. — Pseudo-unconformity in the Lafayette formation, near Oxford, Mississippi. Exposure, 20 feet.

in deposition during the same episode. It is probable, however, that
the difference in original composition is accentuated by weathering.

The deeper exposures of this divide suggest a tripartition of the
deposit. While the massive upper member and the stratified subjacent
member maintain their individuality and relation, the lower part of the
latter is frequently cross-bedded, somewhat silty, and distinct in color
from the overlying phase — there is an upper massive, brick-red member,
a middle stratified member consisting of alternating layers of snow-white
clay and orange-red sand, and the basal stratified and cross stratified
bed of brown, drab, and gray sands, silts, and clays; but this division
of the basal member is largely arbitrary. Going with the differentiation
of the lower part of the deposit there is evidently increased thickness;

M'UEE . ]

TYPE AREA OF THE FORMATION.

457

for although, some of the valleys are deep, the subjacent Eocene rocks are
rarely exposed. Moreover, the formation has a measured thickness of
200 feet at Oxford according to Hilgard,1 who illustrates also the rela¬
tion between the semi-arbitrarily delimited second and third members
of the deposit as displayed in the railway cut at Oxford. His section2 is
reproduced in Fig. 58.

This is par excellence the type area of the formation; as shown else¬
where it was discriminated and named after the county lying largely
between the Yocona and Tallahatchee in central Mississippi by Hilgard
more than a third of a century ago; and, moreover, it comprises here
the massive upper member of which alone the formation consists
throughout much of its extent, and in addition the lower member or
members characterizing the formation in the depositing ground of the
great river of the continent — as well as the peculiar siliceous clays sup¬
plied by the Cumberland and Tennessee.

It is noteworthy that the increasing elevation of the land northward
coincides almost exactly with the rise in the Columbia shore line, so
that the Columbia mantle cohtinues over the whole of the Yocoua-Talla-

Fig. 58. — Structure of Lafayette formation at Oxford, Mississippi. After Hilgard.

hatchie divide save a few knobs crowned with clinking sandironstone
of the Lafayette, which rise 50 feet or more above the general wave- washed
upland plain as they rose above the Pleistocene waters. Toward Abbe¬
ville this upland plain breaks down into a labyrinth of valleys and a
maze of steep- sloped, round topped hills, such as characterize the Yala-
busha basin; for the Tallahatchie has long been an active river : During
pre- Lafayette times it deeply sculptured the Eocene ridge; later it
trenched completely through the massive Lafayette mantle, despite its
thickness of over 200 feet, and carried away probably half the volume
of that formation throughout its whole basin; and since the Columbia
mantling it has cut through the latest sheet and renewed its work upon
both the Lafayette and Eocene strata along scores of lines. So the
Lafayette exposures again increase in number to dozen and scores to
the mile, and the traveler is seldom out of sight of deep storm gashes
in which the substructure is laid open. A typical gully 40 feet in
depth is illustrated in Fig. 50, which is reproduced from a photograph
taken near Waterford, Mississippi; and half the depth of a more ap¬
palling one midway between Waterford and Holly Springs (near Lurnp-

Geology and Agriculture of Mississippi, I860, p. 6.

2 Op. cit., PI. 2, Fig. 3.

458

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

kins Mill) is shown in Fig. (10. Both illustrations represent the strati¬
fied member only, the superior massive layer being locally absent, as fre¬
quently happens north of Tallahatchie. In Fig. 59 the Lafayette forms
the surface; in Fig. 00 there is a mantle of sandy Columbia loam 10 feet
thick, definitely demarked at the base.

Certain features of the Tallahatchie Lafayette are noteworthy. First
in importance, the tri partition beginning about the southern boundary
of the basin becomes more definite, though the middle and lower mem¬
bers may be separated only arbitrarily; second in importance, the mid¬
dle and lower members contain intercalated sheets of clay in which well
preserved leaf impressions and other vegetal fossils are included;

Fig. 59. — Structure of tlie Lafayette formation near Waterford, Mississippi. Exposure, 40 feet.

third, the sheets of snow-white siliceous clay thicken and become of
considerable economic worth for pottery material, as at Holly Springs
and elsewhere; and fourth, the entire deposit continues to thicken, a
boring at Holly Springs revealing 200 feet, according to Johnson, de¬
spite the many indications that the subterraue here lies exceptionally
high.

The plant remains found in the clays interbedded with sands in the
Tallahatchie basin and on Wolf River have not been fully identified.
It should be observed that while certain of the genera (if not of the
species) are living in the lower Mississippi region to-day, the material
as a whole displays, or at least suggests, a Laramie facies; and also
that several competent geologists familiar with the Lignitic in Missis¬
sippi, Alabama, Tennessee and Arkansas are disposed to refer the leaf-

M°GEE.]

FEATURES IN NORTHERN MISSISSIPPI.

459

bearing clays to that formation on the ground of lithologic resem¬
blance. Tf this reference be just, then the thickness of the formation
may be less than that assigned by Hilgard at Oxford and Johnson at
Holly Springs, and even the exposed thickness at Lagrange may in¬
clude an unknown amount of the protean Lignitic deposits, though
no demarcation has ever been found. The testimony of the plant fos¬
sils is of course only suggestive; for not only is the identification in¬
complete, but there are thus far no means of comparing the stages in
evolution of plant life in the upper Missouri and Rocky Mountain re-

Fig. CO. — Structure of the Lafayette formation, near Holly Springs, Mississippi. Exposure, 30 feet.

gions and in the lower Mississippi region respectively; it can only be
said that in the one region the geography was repeatedly revolution¬
ized in such way as greatly to modify climatal conditions, while in the
other the geography has undergone only minor changes of such char¬
acter as not to modify climate, so that the flora has undoubtedly persisted
in the remarkable fashion suggested by the present existence of Lara¬
mie or Lafayette plants in Louisiana.

Over the divide between the Tallahatchie and the Wolf, the relations
between the Columbia and the Lafayette are well displayed. As in
the Yalabusha basin and over the Yocona-Tallahatcliie divide, the

460

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

higher elevations coincide approximately with the Columbia shore line,
only a few rounded eminences, like the two Lumpkins mountains, 5 miles
southeast of Holly Springs, rising above the wave-fashioned plain. As
usual, these knobs are crowned by clinking sandiron stones of the La¬
fayette; and it is noteworthy that the maximum thickness of the Co¬
lumbia loam usually appears in the vicinity of such knobs, and that the
sheet attenuates over the lower lands. Moreover, a portion of the loamy
sheet immediately circumscribing such elevations is exceptionally
sandy, sometimes indeed made up almost exclusively of rearranged La-

Fig. 61. — Structure of Lafayette formation; Lagrange, Tennessee. The light bed of the figure is the
black, humus-stained bed of nature. Exposure, 60 feet.

fayette sands which can with difficulty be discriminated from the upper
member of the earlier formation; while toward the lower lands the ele¬
ment of fine and far-traveled material increases. In one conspicuous
case in the town of Holly Springs the formations are separated, how¬
ever, by an old soil. Here, too, as in some other cases, the wave-
fashioned plain constituting the upper surface of the Columbia is so
uniform as almost certainly to indicate the original attitude; yet in this,
as in all parallel cases in extreme northern Mississippi and western
Tennessee, the plain inclines northward, while the rivers hug their
northern bluffs, indicating that the Columbia submergence and the

461

MrGEE.]

FEATURES

IN CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI.

post-Columbia lifting culminate about the headwaters of the Talla¬
hatchie.

From the Tallahatchie to the Wolf, in central Mississippi, gullies of the
type displayed about Water Valley sometimes pass into “gulfs” of the
Fort Adams type, and wherever the Columbia mantle is well developed
these chasms abound. So there are exposures in scores; and the char¬

acteristics oi the Lafayette formation! are maintained in all respects save
that the volume apparently increases, that the basal member is better
developed, and that the siliceous clay sheets increase in thickness.
Farther westward the same relations appear to hold except that the
surface inclines, and the Columbia mantle thickens, riverward, so that
exposures are rare. Moreover, the upper and obdurate member of the
Lafayette frequently fails, and in such cases discrimination of the Pleis-

Fig. 62. — Forest bed between Columbia and Lafayette formations ; Lagrange, Tennessee. The light
band one-fifth way down the vertical face is the black soil ; above lies Columbia loam, largely made
up of rearranged Lafayette sand; below lies the Lafayette, at first massive, then bedded. Exposure,
65 feet.

tocene and late Neocene deposits becomes difficult. Thus, at Sardis, a
few miles within the bluff rampart, the Columbia loam is characteristic
in the upper portions of the exposures and the Lafayette is charac¬
teristic in the lower portions; but there is sometimes an intermediate
zone which may be assigned only arbitrarily. In the development of
modern erosion this intermediate zone is commonly obdurate and gives
origin to characteristic erosion forms, such as are illustrated in Figs.
50 to 53. In this latitude, as farther southward, it is observable, on
passing from central Mississippi to the rampart overlooking the delta,
that the Lafayette becomes more and more pebbly ; in the longitude of
Holly Springs pebbles are exceedingly rare; but toward the “delta”
pebbles are commonly disseminated through the upper part of the for-

462

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

mation and accumulated in lines in the lower portion, while they are
locally gathered in great beds, as for example, 2 miles southwest of
Sardis, and in the railway cutting 3 miles north of Senatobia.

On crossing Wolf River and the Mississippi-Tennessee line no note¬
worthy change occurs in the Lafayette formation or in its structural
relations save continued increase in thickness, but the exposures on
the northern banks of Wolf River are of special interest in a historical
way as well as by reason of the economic value of the pottery clays
often contained in the formation.

Fig. 63. — Structure of Lafayette formation; tbree-fourths of a mile west of Lagrange, Tennessee.
Light colored stratilied sands above, dark red, massive loamy sand below. Exposure (top of slope
to bottom of gully), 30 feet.

The once flourishing town of Lagrange is located on a Columbia-
mantled, northward inclining plateau, homologous in all respects with
that upon which Holly Springs is built; the southern base of this
plateau is washed by Wolf River; and modern erosion has extended
into the plateau scarp in great gullies 100 to 150 feet deep, which are
already invading the town and, as usual, growing with ever- iu creasing
rapidity. The scarp is 200 feet high; from base to summit it displays
characteristic Lafayette deposits, chiefly stratified sands with occa¬
sional lenses and pellets of clay, sometimes impure, but again the fine
white siliceous material used for pottery making.

MrOEE.]

463

FEATURES UN WESTERN TENNESSEE.

One of the gullies already invading Lagrange from the south is illus¬
trated ju Fig. 61, which is a mechanical reproduction of a photograph.
As shown in this cut, there is a mantle of brown Columbia loam some 15
feet thick resting on an old soil, which grades down into black, sandy clay
6 feet thick. The body of the Lafayette below is without well defined
structure lines, though it lacks the massive rocklike aspect characteristic
of the upper member. The photograph reproduced in Fig. 613 looks north¬
ward on the opposite side of the road leading down to Wolf River, and
shows a longer stretch of the old forest bed beneath the Columbia man-

Flo. 64.— Structure of Lafayette formation; 1 mile west of Lagrange, Tenn. (The stratified layer is

strengthened.) Exposure, 30 feet.

tie, which here rests on the massive upper member of the Lafayette.
These exposures acquire value from the fact that this is one of the two
known localities in which the formations are separated by ancient soils.

Figs. G3 to 65 are mechanical reproductions of photographs taken
about a mile west of Lagrange; Fig. 63 illustrates the intercalation of a
heavy bed of brick-red sandy loam resembling the massive superior mem¬
ber beneath the light-colored clays of the middle member, such as are
sometimes referred to the Lignitic, and illustrates also the development
of ferruginous plates along the structure lines; Fig. 64 displays the rela-

464

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

tion between the massive upper member and the stratified portion be¬
neath, and Fig-. 65 is of like import.

In general the divide between Wolf River and the Big Hatchie dis- '
plays less pronounced local relief than that characteristic of the upland
south of the Wolf, the configuration approaching in some degree the
flat profile type displayed over the Yocona-Tallahatchie upland; yet the
plains are not infrequently invaded by post-Columbia erosion in such
manner as to give origin to dendritic drainage systems flowing in v
shaped ravines, and as usual throughout the Lafayette terrane the
storm rills have gashed the valley sides and run into the abandoned
fields and deforested uplands so extensively as to yield exposures by
the hundred for each hour’s journey. From these exposures it is learned

Fig. 65. — Structure of Lafayette formation, 1J miles west of Lagrange, Tennessee. The upper
massive portion is the case-hardened, loamy sand forming the summital member of the formation. The
laminated bed is of light gray sand, and frequently contains sheets of white siliceous clay ; below lies
the more heterogeneous stratified material constituting the basal member in case tripartition be
accepted. Exposure, 35 feet.

that the Columbia mantle stretches northward, though in diminishing
altitude, to beyond the Big Hatchie; they also indicate that the massive
homogenous upper member of the Lafayette, frequently absent in the
land of high relief between the Tallahatchie and the Wolf, resumes its
prevalence and is displayed in nearly every gully; and with the recur¬
rence of this obdurate stratum the gullies are transformed from narrow
gashes at their heads to amphitheaters broad and steep walled as those
of the Fort Adams region, though never so deep by reason of the higher
base-level. The exposures show, too, that the snow-white beds of the
middle member continue in scarcely diminished thickness, though com¬
monly in slightly diminished fineness of material, pebbly grains and angu-

MrUEE ]

FEATURES IN WESTERN TENNESSEE.

465

lar chert fragments occasionally appearing within them. The dearth of
outcrops of the older rocks, even in the deepest exposures, indicates that
the thickness of the formation is maintained if not increased. A repre¬
sentative exposure of this divide is that illustrated in Fig. G6 repro¬
duced from a photograph taken half a mile north of Hickory Yalley.

Farther westward on the same divide the Columbia loam soon thick¬
ens so greatly as commonly to conceal the Lafayette; but in occasional
exposures this formation appears beneath the brown loam or loess with
its basal gravel bed, as far west as 3 miles south of Millington. In ex¬
treme southwestern Tennessee the lifting of the land since the Pleisto¬
cene submergence appears to be less than usual, and consequently the
Lafayette lies near or below the low- water level of the Mississippi if

Fig. 66. — Structure of Lafayette formation, near Hickory Valley, Tennessee. The faintly defined upper
member is Columbia loam, largely redeposited Lafayette sand; the indefinite light band is the silty
base of the same; the heavy, massive bed with flecks of white is the typically developed superior
member of the Lafayette ; the stratified bed below is the more friable inferior member. Exposure,
25 feet.

it does not fail completely; although, as indicated by a section recently
published by Salford, it appears under the Columbia brown loam loess
and Orange Sand (of Salford) beneath the loam-mantled platform occu¬
pied by the city of Memphis. 1 This section, developed from artesian
borings and excavations in considerable number, is reduced to form the
accompanying Fig. G7.

Between the Big Hatchie and the Forked Deer the relief Increases, the
flat plains, such as lie southwest of the Big Hatchie all about Bolivar,
disappear, the valleys deepen and widen, and the intervening divides,

1 Bulletin Tenn, State Brd. Health, 1889.

12 GrEOL— — 30

466

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

crests, and spurs shrink in width and stretch in height until the road is
a succession of hills with gullies and gulfs on every hand. So the struc¬
ture may be traced from gully to gully, from mile to mile, with exposures
always in sight, all the way from the Big Hatchie binds to those of the
Forked Deer; and the Lafayette remains essentially unchanged, and

essentially identical with the same formation as
displayed about Waterford and Holly Springs, and
again at Lagrange, save that the upper member is
thicker and more persistent. Beyond the Forked
Deer precisely similar exposures occur in equal
abundance ; and by means of them the formation
may be traced with unchanged characters quite
across western Tennessee in the longitude of Jack-
son, Milan, and Dresden, save that toward the
Obion chert pebbles, such as characterize the La¬
fayette in the same longitude in southern Missis¬
sippi but fail in northern Mississippi, reappear
and increase in size and number toward the Ken¬
tucky boundary ; but on tracing the formation
either east or west from this axial line, slight
differences appear. Toward the west it inclines
riverward and is overlain with ever-increasing
depth by Columbia loam, and in its occasional out¬
crops it is found more and more pebbly, more and
more heterogeneous iu materials, and in structure
often grading into the newer deposits through a
hybrid zone, as at Friendship, in northwestern
Alamo County, though sometimes it is distinct,
as on the eastern shore of Reelfoot Lake, 4 miles
south of Samberg; while toward the Tennessee
River the Columbia mantle thins and comes to
reflect more and more accurately the composition
of the Lafayette until about the longitude of
Paris, Huntington, and Lexington it fails and the
surface which is formed of brick-red loams ever increasing in the content
of pebbles until, about Camden and elsewhere in the same longitude,
great ledges and even hills of ferruginous conglomerate take the place
of the finer material. Quite beyond the Tennessee River, at Johnson -
• ville, and even on the Tennessee-Cumberland divide at Tennessee Ridge,
800 feet above tide, great beds of gravel embedded in a matrix of brick-
red sandy loam flecked with white in characteristic fashion, appear. Ex¬
cept toward the Tennessee River the thickness of the formation is inde¬
terminate in this State; but immediately west of the Tennessee River
it frequently forms hills 100 to 150 feet in height, and there are indica¬
tions of thickening toward the Mississippi.

Fig. 67.— SectioD developed
by artesian boring at Morn-
phis, Tenn. (after Safibrd). 1.
Loess and brown loam, 40 feet.
2. Sand and gravel (probably
Columbia and Lafayette com
bined), 30 feet. 3. Ferruginous
clays of the Ligmtic, 200 feet.
4. Sands, probably belonging
to the Liguitic, 400 feet.

In western Kentucky the land lies lower with respect to the great river

MrUEK. ]

FEATURES IN WESTERN KENTUCKY.

467

than farther southward; but as in Mississippi and in western Ten¬
nessee, the depth of the Columbia submergence coincides remarkably
with the general upland level, so that more than half of the “ Jackson
Purchase” (that part of Kentucky bounded by the Mississippi, the
Ohio, the Tennessee, and the parallel of 30° 30'), is mantled by the
Columbia loam, which passes into loess in the Mississippi bluffs.

By reason of the higher base-level, this portion of the ancient Missis¬
sippi embayment is not so deeply gashed by modern erosion as the
Lignitic ridge of western Tennessee and northern central Mississippi.
Yet there is no dearth of sections; except near the Mississippi where
the land lies low and the Columbia is at the same time thick, there are
many satisfactory exposures for each hour’s ride, and by means of them
the features of the Lafayette formation may be traced from river to
river and correlated from divide to divide. The formation does not
appear in the Hickman Bluffs; at Columbus it was not displayed in the
principal bluff in the autumn of 1890, though characteristic brick-red and
orange red sandy loams, flecked with white, considerably ferruginated
pebbly beds, and cross-stratified sands with one or two continuous
sheets of white siliceous clay, are revealed in a cutting on the Columbus
Junction road near the cemetery in the eastern part of the city; but at
Wickliffe the characteristic brick-red and pebbly and sandy loam appears
in a railway cut half a mile south of the town, and also in the ravines
eastward about Mayfield ; at Boaz and Hickory Grove the deposit is
well displayed in aspects approximating those characteristic of west¬
ern Tennessee, save that the pebbles are everywhere more abundant,
and save that the snow-white sheets of siliceous clay are rarer and less
pure in material, though sometimes so thick and so pure as to be of high
economic value. Eminently satisfactory exposures occur in the u gulfs ” 4
miles northeast of Mayfield. Different views of one of these exposures
are illustrated in Figs. G8 and 09. The upper pebbly bed near the top of
Fig. 08 marks the junction of the brown Columbia loam with the brick-
red and red brown Lafayette materials, perhaps somewhat disturbed
and rearranged; and it is doubtful, but unimportant, with which forma¬
tion this bed should be classed. The lower pebbly bed undoubtedly
belongs to the Lafayette; the gravel is rather fine, subangular and
rounded, made up of chert; it is imbedded in a matrix of firm sandy
loam, and grades downward into clean, massive, obscurely jointed but
generally otherwise structureless loam of similar character, commonly
flecked with white (though in the upper part of the stratum the flecks
are too fine to show in the mechanical reproduction). This bed is 10 or
12 feet thick. Toward its base it contains at first rounded pellets, and
afterward angular and subangular fragments of laminated white silice¬
ous clay, such as forms sheets in the subjacent stratified member, the
whole sometimes making a sort of breccia quite similar to that fre¬
quently seen in exposures about Oxford, Mississippi. Still lower the
admixture of light colored material increases until grays and whites

468

TIIE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

predominate over reds, the brecciation gives way to stratification, and
the lower (or middle) member appears in its usual aspect.

Farther eastward characteristic brick-red sands and loams approach
the surface and are well displayed about Benton and nearly equally
well about Murray beneath a veneer of brown sand continuous with
the Columbia, but evidently composed largely of rearranged Lafay¬
ette materials. In these exposures the deposit is much more pebbly
than toward the interior, and great ridges of conglomerate flank the
eastern fork of Clarks River. The gradual modification in the character
of the deposit toward the Tennessee River is well displayed between

Fig. 68. — Structure of Lafayette formation, Now Mayfield, Kentucky. Columbia ( ? ) gravel at sum¬
mit, Lafayette gravel and loam in central portion, with flecks, pellets, and rounded masses of white
siliceous clay below. (The pebble beds are strengthened by retouching.) Exposure, 16 feet.

Benton, on Clarks River, and Birmingham, on the Tennessee ; in exposures
immediately east of Clarks River the pebbles are larger and more abund¬
ant than in the central part of the Jackson Purchase, and gradually
increase in number and abundance toward the divide; but beyond the
divide there is a much more rapid increase in the dimensions and num¬
ber of the pebbles until half the volume of the formation displayed in
the roadside gullies is made up of subangular and little worn frag¬
ments of chert, often 6 inches or more in diameter, and averaging twice
as large as those on the Clarksward side of the divide and four times as
large as about Mayfield, Beyond the Tennessee the surface rises into

M'GEE. ]

FEATURES IN WESTERN KENTUCKY.

469

a higli, rugose ridge separating that river from the Cumberland; but
over much of this ridge great gravel beds, with intercalations and com¬
monly with a matrix of orange-red loam, frequently appear; and near
the newly projected town of Grand Rivers there are immense beds of
gravel, usually nearly clean and bleached white, but sometimes imbedded
in a matrix of the usual loam, sometimes stained and cemented by iron,
and at one point displaying a bed of characteristic massive semi-glazed
white-flecked sandy loam, all undoubtedly representing the same forma¬
tion.

Fig. 69. — Structure of the Lafayette formation, near Mayfield, Kentucky. Another view of the section

shown in fig. 68.

North of the Ohio River, beds of gravel apparently representing the
Lafayette formation, occur at Villa Ridge, and exposures of gravel and
red loam appear here and there farther northward quite to the summit of
the Grand Chain crossing southern Illinois, between Jonesboro and
Carbondale.

The characteristics of the formation as developed in western Tennes¬
see, and as exposed before the modern erosion growing out of deforest¬
ing invaded that territory, were described in considerable detail by
Salford in his report on the geology of Tennessee, published in 1809.
By this geologist the formation was designated “ Lagrange ” and re¬
ferred to the Eocene. The characteristics of the same formation as devel¬
oped in western Kentucky have recently been set forth in considerable
detail by Lougliridge in a report on the geology of the Jackson Purchase
(1888). By this author the lower member or members were correlated
with the Lagrange of Salford, while the upper member (above the line

470

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

of pseudo-unconformity displayed commonly in northern Mississippi and
western Tennessee and illustrated in Figs. 02, 04, 05, 00, 08, and 09), was
correlated with the “Orange Sand” (of Hilgard, not of Salford), the
upper portion being assigned to the Quaternary and the lower member to
the Eocene. Some of the exposures of southern Illinois were studied
by Worthen and his collaborators during the progress of the State sur¬
vey, and were simply classed as Tertiary; and Chamberlin and Salis¬
bury have recently reexamined some of these, together with other
exposures in Illinois, Kentucky, and Tennessee, and have followed
W ortlien’s classification.1

West of the Mississippi River, deposits apparently analogous to those
of the well differentiated Lafayette of the eastern embayment appear,
notably at Little Rock. Here the mass of the deposit is made up of
brick-red sandy loam, often packed with pebbles and sometimes con¬
taining bowlders 2 feet or more in diameter. The materials differ from
those east of the Mississippi in that most of the pebbles are novaculite,
while most of the bowlders are semimetamorphic Paleozoic rocks.

A typical exposure of the deposit as displayed in central Arkansas
is given in Fig. 70, mechanically reproduced from a photograph taken
3 miles northwest of Malvern. The pebbly bed in the upper part of the
cut represents the Lafayette. The massive material beneath is par¬
tially decomposed and ferruginated glauconitic sand of Eocene age. In
a neighboring railway cut the Lafayette contains numerous blocks and
slabs of an obdurate Paleozoic quartzite, sometimes reaching 10 feet,
in longest diameter and 20 or 25 feet in cubical content.

In southwestern Arkansas the Lafayette terrane expands from a
narrow zone connecting the Mississippi flood plain and the Paleozoic
plateau, as at Little Rock and Malvern, and stretches from the Ouachita
to Red River in a bed broken only by the larger waterways though
half sheeted by Columbia loam. In this region it has been described
in some detail by Hill as the “Plateau Gravel.”2 Here, as elsewhere,
the features of the formation vary with the propinquity and size of
waterways : Thus at Arkadelphia, which is founded upon the formation,
it is made up largely of well rounded gravel, comprising novaculite,
chert, quartzite, and quartz pebbles imbedded in a matrix of brick-red
loam sparingly flecked with white in characteristic fashion and incon¬
spicuously stratified towards the base; while in railway cuttings near
the divides separating the Little Missouri from its neighbors, between
Guerdon and Berne and also near Prescott the red loam element pre¬
vails and the pebbles are small and inconspicuous. So, too, about
Washington and Center Point, which are near divides, the formation
is made up of brick -red, white-flecked loam, with rather scant and small
pebbles disseminated throughout, while at Nashville, which is located

1 Am. Jour, Sci., 3d series, vol. 41, 1891, pp. 359-377.

2 Aim. Kep. Geol. Surv. of Ark. for 1888, vol. 2, pp, 35-42 and elsewhere

M'GEE.l

FEATURES IN ARKANSAS.

471

on a mill stream (Mine Creek), pebbles are abundant and frequently 3
to 5 inches in diameter. It is noteworthy that in addition to the in¬
crease in number and size of pebbles toward waterways in this region,
the number and dimensions of these materials increase northwestward
toward the low mountain masses and ridges of Paleozoic rock, the more
obdurate varieties of which are represented in the pebbles.

South and southwest of Red River the formation reappears in greater
continuity and still broader development. Red River is flanked by
broad terraces of brick-red loam analogous to the “second bottoms”

Fig. 70. — Contact between Lafayette and Eocene deposits, 0 miles northwest of Malvern, Arkansas.

Exposure, 10 feet.

of Alabama, and toward Atchafalaya Bayou this slack-water deposit
expands and merges into the wide- stretching homologue of the combined
brown loam and Port Hudson phases of the Columbia formation,
which extends thence southwestward to form the Calcasieu prairies of
Louisiana. From Shreveport to Natchitoches, and on to the middle of
Rapides Parish, the red-tinted terrace flanking the river is overlooked
from the southwest by a rugose pine-clad peneplain made up of the
more obdurate early members of the coastal plain series, mantled by
the characteristic pebble-dotted and white-flecked orange loams of the

472

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Lafayette. This peneplain extends well toward the Sabine, and
throughout it is analogous with the cis-Mississippi peneplain in physi¬
ography and in structure, save that it lies nearer base-level and takes
on gentler slopes, and thus gives fewer natural exposures.

Beyond Red and Sabine rivers, orange tinted loams, pebbly along
waterways, cleaner over the divides, appear here and there throughout
northeastern Texas. Farther southward these materials, which some¬
times may be discriminated only with difficulty from the oxidized and
ferruginated glauconitic sands of the Eocene, appear to grade into the
sandy deposit described by Penrose under the name Fayette Beds.1
In the southwestern half of the coastal plain in Texas, they are still far¬
ther modified, and display two well defined phases analogous to but
more distinctive than those characteristic of the cis-Mississippi develop¬
ment. Along the waterways, particularly toward the interior of the
coastal plain, the formation consists of heavy gravel beds of well-worn
pebbles representing the terranes traversed by the rivers (though some
appear to represent primarily the montanic rocks of which these ter¬
ranes are built), imbedded in a loamy matrix, which is red, or orange, or
pink from the Colorado eastward, generally gray, or creamy, or whitish
in color and chalky in texture from the San Marcos south westward.
Sometimes the pebbles are associated with calcareous, perhaps chalky,
nodules as at San Antonio; and frequently the beds are cemented into
more or less firm conglomerates, the cement being lime rather than iron
as in the east. Commonly the gravel beds and conglomerates occur in
isolated patches near the rivers, so disposed and so related to the physi¬
ography as to indicate that they are remnants, spared by energetic deg¬
radation, of a mantle once continuous and thickest and most obdurate
along lines nearly coinciding with the present drainage. Remnants of
this kind occur at Sail Antonio and near Calaveras.

Elsewhere, unusually pebbly and thus particularly obdurate remnants
of considerable extent are found on divides, as about Flatonia and
Waelder, between the Colorado and Guadalupe, and still more notably
on both sides of the Nueces and on the northern side of the Rio Grande
in Texas, as well as beyond the Rio Grande in Mexico. The second
phase of the formation, which apparently corresponds with the Fayette
beds of the Texas geologists, is a nearly continuous sheet of predom¬
inantly calcareous sands interbedded with clays and loams,- which
toward the gulf grade into a regularly bedded earthy chalk, as at San
Diego. So, in southeastern Texas the deposit corresponds fairly with
its more easterly homologue, while in southwestern Texas it is mate¬
rially differentiated; yet the diverse phases intergrade in such manner
that there can be little doubt as to the identity of both phases with the
widespread deposit of the eastern coastal plain.

First Ann. Kept. Geol. Surv. of Texas, for 1889-90, p. 45, et seq.

WO EE.]

FEATURES IN EASTERN MISSISSIPPI.

473

In eastern-central Mississippi and western-central Alabama the Co¬
lumbia loam concealing the Lafayette near the great river fails, except
in so far as it is represented by the “second bottoms” of the gulfward
drainage lines, yet the formation itself is so far attenuated and so fre¬
quently degraded that its features grow more and more obscure and
the deposits more and more difficult to trace. Along the eastern side
of the Mississippi embayment there are on an average half a dozen
exposures to the mile, and no hiatus between exposures exceeding 2 or
3 miles; but in eastern Mississippi and Alabama, and indeed thence
eastward and northeastward to the eastern type locality on the Appo¬
mattox, the exposures average only one to each half dozen miles, and
the intervals between exposures on a single line frequently exceed a
score to the mile, though they are much shorter where the lines of explo¬
ration form a network. Yet the distinctive features of the formation
are so characteristic and so persistent that the identification may safely
be carried from exposure to exposure and the correlation from river to
river, o ver the whole area of the southeastern coastal plain.

West of Ellisville, on the Tallahala Itiver, the surface is a strongly
undulating one of autogenetic type, and the Lafayette is thin and
frequently absent so that the Grand Gulf clays and mudstones fre¬
quently appear in road cuttings and in all of the smaller waterways not
encumbered by second bottom deposits. Typical exposures occur on
the peneplain 3 miles west of Ellisville. Here the deposit consists of
obscurely cross-bedded orange tinted loam, with discontinuous layers
of sand, thin lines and minute flecks of plastic white clay, and pebbles
either arranged in lines or disseminated. The pebbles consist of a
variety of cherts, generally subangular but sometimes well rounded,
commonly ranging from an inch to one and a half inches in diameter,
The thickness exposed is about 20 feet. The outcrops are in a rem¬
nant of the once continuous deposit, which is completely insulated and
rests with marked local and general unconformity on the Grand Gnlf
mudstones. Perhaps the finest exposure of the Lafayette in eastern
Mississippi occurs at and immediately north of Vosburg. Here are
found vast accumulations of orange tinted loam, irregularly bedded and
sometimes partially cemented. The vertical exposure exceeds 30 feet.
North of Ellisville, and again north of Vosburg, are extensive areas
without trace of the Lafayette deposits, which are especially signifi¬
cant as indices of a complex relation between this late Neocene forma¬
tion and the subterrane, as will be more fully shown later.

Immediately west of Meridian lies the bulirstone hill-land, consti¬
tuting the crest of the Eocene ridge of northern-central Mississippi and
the principal divide of the Gulf slope. The configuration of this region
is that of a miniature mountain range; there is the meandering crest
line, buttressed by minor crests and spurs, rising into peaks and
sending off subordinate crests to terminate in spurs and cusps; but
every crest, peak, and cusp is blunted, though less notably so than in

474

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

the upland formed by the Lignitic 100 miles farther northward. The
local relief ranges from 100 to 250 feet. Now, over this miniature
mountain land the characteristic orange tinted sandy loams appear here
and there, not as a continuous mantle, but as shreds and remnants of
the mantle caught on the crests, about the rims of the amphitheaters,
and, more frequently, on the lower slopes, wherever the post- Lafayette
degradation missed the lines of antecedent activity. Here, as usual,
the deposit is a massive sandy loam, commonly orange red, rock like
and seiniglazed on weathering, flecked and streaked with white, and
containing moderately abundant chert pebbles toward the lower levels.
Northeast of Meridian, on the old Marion road, the structural rela¬
tion is different. Here the characteristic and distinctive orange-tinted
deposit rests on the little indurated clays of that portion of Hilgard’s
Lignitic which Johnson names the Hatchetigbee; and while the indi¬
cations are that the Lafayette is nearly continuous, it so closely re¬
sembles disintegrated Hatchetigbee clays, and contains so large an
element derived therefrom, that the two deposits, albeit of widely di¬
verse age, can be discriminated only with difficulty and sometimes not
at all. In the northern part of the city of Meridian the formation is
well exposed in typical aspect; and here Johnson has found within it
well preserved leaves, apparently of a magnolia identical with the spe¬
cies now living in the vicinity.

The numerous excellent exposures of the Lafayette about Tusca¬
loosa, Alabama, display the characteristic features of the formation,
save that the pebbles are more numerous than in Mississippi and con¬
tain a considerable element of siliceous dolomite, with some quartzite.
Here, as usual along the rivers draining into the Gulf, the formation is
partly overlain by unconformable “second bottom” deposits, and in
turn it overlies with still greater unconformity the Potomac (Tuscaloosa)
formation ; yet despite the widely diverse ages of the latter formations
— one late Neocene, the other early Cretaceous — they sometimes merge
so completely that no sharp line of demarcation may be drawn between
them. This is notably the case in a railway cutting at Cottondale, 7 miles
east of Tuscaloosa, where the Potomac is a cross stratified gravel with
a matrix of sand, and the Lafayette a horizontally bedded mass of
similar gravel in a matrix of loam; yet despite the discordant bedding
the materials merge through a 2-foot zone which can not be certainly
assigned to either formation. This confusing contact is illustrated in PI.
xxxiv, which is a mechanical reproduction of a photograph taken by
Dr. B. A. Smith. Apparent intergradation of this character long misled
geologists, including even the illustrious Lyell, as to the relations be¬
tween the deposits. The resemblance in nature is even closer than in
the photograph; for the colors are similar and the materials largely
alike, save that those of the mantle are more completely oxidized than
those of the subterrane from which they were derived, thus simulating

RELATIONS OF LAFAYETTE AND TUSCALOOSA FORMATIONS, COTTONDALE, ALABAMA.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXXIV

M'GEE. ]

FEATURES IN ALABAMA.

475

the usual effects of weather. In some of the exposures on the Ala¬
bama Great Southern Railway between Cottondale and Tuscaloosa,
however, the contact is marked either by ferruginous crusts or by
sheets of pebbles of ferruginous sandstone evidently derived from the
older formation.

Farther southward the formation is displayed at several localities, no¬
tably at Eutaw. Here it diverges from the usual character in two re¬
spects, each of which indicates an intimate relation to a subjacent and
much older formation : North and east of Eutaw the deposit is exception¬
ally sandy and friable and the bedding is frequently obscure; and in nu¬
merous exposures ou the Alabama Great Southern Railway and along the
wagon road leading to the Tuscaloosa (or Black Warrior) River it may
be seen to merge with the stratified sands of the Eutaw, and in general
to take on the features of that Cretaceous formation — in short, it is as
evident here that the Lafayette is made up in part of the immediately
subjacent formation as it is in the numerous contacts with the Potomac
(Tuscaloosa) formation at Lively, Macon, Columbus, and other points
at which the materials obviously intergrade. Southwest of Eutaw a
change in the composition and general behavior of the deposit quickly
supervenes ; only scattered ridges and irregular patches of the forma¬
tion now remain overlying the peculiar middle Cretaceous formation
which Smith and Johnson designate the Tombigbee chalk (the u Rot¬
ten limestone” of the books); in these outliers the deposit exhibits
its usual characteristic features, but on close examination the sands and
clays, such as those of which it elsewhere consists, are found to be inter¬
mixed with calcareous particles, while toward the surface it loses the
peculiar massive aspect aud dull glaze so commonly characteristic of the
formation, and breaks down into pink sandy clays on weathering. Over
the Tombigbee chalk in this vicinity the prevailing colors are lighter
and grayer, and over the Eutaw sands darker and browner, than those
displayed toward the fall line or generally elsewhere.

It is in Alabama that the Lafayette formation has been found
nearest the coast. Between St. Elmo and Grand Bay, in the extreme
southwestern corner of the State, two strongly contrasted types of
surface appear. The first comprises the smooth, sensibly horizontal
pine-clad sands or “ pine meadows ” of the coast; and the second con¬
sists of undulating bosses, knolls, and plateaus rising above and evi¬
dently protruding through the sand. The sand plains and pine mead¬
ows represent the local phase of the Columbia formation, while the
protruding knolls and plateaus of ancient topography consist of reg¬
ularly and rather heavily bedded loams, sands, and clays, commonly
orange hued but weathering to dark reds and browns, which evidently
represent a somewhat erratic phase of the Lafayette. The deposits
are erratic, first, in the complete assortment of materials, the sands and
clays being separated aud laid down in alternating layers; second, in

476

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

the fineness of the materials, clay forming the predominant element,
while the pebbles are represented only by bits of quartz or chert, seldom
over a quarter of an inch in diameter, sparsely disseminated through
the sandy layers; third, in the exceptionally regular stratification; and
fourth, in the absence of the distinctive clay-outlined cross stratifica¬
tion, though the sandy strata are sometimes cross-bedded. The for¬
mation here is exceptionally ferruginous. A thin layer in a cutting
three-quarters of a mile east of Grand Bay is locally used as an ocher;
the plowed fields and other exposed surfaces are sometimes besprinkled
or even shingled with small ferruginous nodules (or buckshot) weath¬
ered out of the loam; the prevailing colors are harsher and generally
darker than usual (though not so dark as at Columbia), ranging from
orange-yellow mixed with gray in some strata, to prevailing orange-
reds weathering to brick-reds and chocolate-browns; and the peculiar
mottling characteristic of the deposit under certain conditions of ex¬
posure throughout nearly its whole extent is beautifully displayed.

In a railway cut in the eastern part of Grand Bay the relation
between the mottling below the reach of ready oxidation and the for¬
mation of the ferruginous concretions found on the surface are clearly
shown. The lower part of the exposure, extending to within 12 or 15 feet
of the surface, is of fairly uniform orange or orange-yellow hue with
some strata passing into gray; next follows a stratum of 5 or C feet,
concentric with the surface and discordant with the stratification, in
which the uniform hues are shot with vertical or oblique lines of darker
color, increasing in number upward and finally uniting in a network of
orange-red bands an inch or more in width, enmeshing polygons and
irregular figures of original color 1 to 5 inches in diameter; while still
nearer the surface the bands widen, the lighter colored polygons disap¬
pear, and a nearly uniform orange-red supervenes. Yet some of the
lines of darker color persist as narrow bands of brown, perhaps marking
jointage planes, and on closely approaching the surface these are fre¬
quently found to become partially indurated, so as to form a network
of embossed chocolate-brown lines, enmeshing orange-red polygons.
About the points of union of the embossed brown bands the segregation
of ferruginous matter and the cementation are most decided, and quite
near to the surface the nuclei thus formed may be found to grade into
irregular ferruginous nodules, diminishing in size and increasing in
hardness until they pass gradually into the state exhibited by the sur¬
face found concretions. So the mottling, the darkening of hue, the
general ferrugiuation, and the formation of nodules are simple results
of oxidation and hydration produced by weathering.

On the eastern shore of Mobile Bay Johnson has found a character¬
istic obscurely bedded orange-tinted loam, undoubtedly representing
the Lafayette, running down in low salients washed by the waters
of the bay at and below tide level; and Langdon has observed on

■toee.] FEATURES IN ALABAMA. 477

Mon Louis Island, beyond the mouth of the bay, stratified loams which
he is disposed to correlate with the same formation.1

About the northern extremity of Mobile Bay the physiography is
similar to that at St. Elmo and Grand Bay, save that the flat-lying
Columbia mantle is intersected by Mobile River and its anastomosing
tributaries and distributaries, this marshland being overlooked, partic¬
ularly from the eastward, by a rugose peneplain, in which the local re¬
lief ranges from 50 to 100 feet. The structure of the peneplain is
revealed in natural gullies and in artificial excavations, notably the
cuttings and gravel pits of the Louisville and Nashville Railway ; and
all of the exposures display massive sandy orange-tinted or brick-red
loam, case-hardening on exposure to the weather, dotted with small
and well worn pebbles of snow-white matter, which grades downward
into massive sands interbedded with gravel. In every exposure the
Lafayette appears in distinctive character. Toward Perdido River,
and more particularly toward the Mobile, the gravel is unusually
coarse and abundant, and near Tensas Station this gravel is largely
worked for railway ballast in pits at the base of the peneplain scarp
skirting the head of Mobile Bay.

Extensive exposures of the Lafayette occur about Montgomery
(particularly in cuttings on the Montgomery and Eufala Railway in the
southeastern part of the city), where it rests unconformably upon the
Eutaw sands, the junction being sometimes marked by a ferruginous
crust, again by a sheet of pebbles, and elsewhere by a decided differ¬
ence in hue, though it is sometimes indistinct; but the characteristics
of the formation here are in no way specially noteworthy save that the
pebbles contain an exceptionally large element of quartzite and semi-
quartzitic sandstone, together with large numbers of subangular frag¬
ments of chert and siliceous dolomite.

South of Montgomery the formation maintains similar characters,
except that the pebbles diminish in size and number, across the Eutaw
terrane. Over the broad zone of the Tombigbee chalk it appears in
crenulate patches and scattered ridges diversifying the divides, for here
as elsewhere it has ill resisted erosion over a calcareous subterrane.
Still farther southward it reappears in volume, giving character to the
topography and sanguineous color to the landscapes, as about Searcy,
Greenville, and Georgiana, on the Louisville and Nashville Railway;
and at Gravella it is so pebbly as to yield abundant material for railway
ballast. In this latitude, as elsewhere, the formation is bipartite; the
upper member is massive, homogeneous, orange-tinted, or brick-red,
flecked with white and sometimes pebble-dotted, weathering into pecu¬
liar massive, semiglazed, rock-like forms, suggesting miniature copies
of the storm-fashioned buttresses of red sandstone in western canyons,
while the lower member is stratified, sometimes cross-bedded, generally
friable, though sometimes cemented along bedding planes, and toward
the main waterways interleaved with sheets of gravel.

1 Am. Jour. Sci., vol. 40, 1890, p. 237 et seq.

478

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

The exposures oil both sides of the Chattahoochee River at Columbus
are specially noteworthy, not only by reason of the clear display of
structural and textural features, but because the terracing which char¬
acterizes the formation at many localities is here particularly well dis¬
played. Columbus isbuilt on a terrace a mile broad, thinly veneered with
“second bottom” (Columbia) loam near the river, but consisting generally
of the orange-red loam of the Lafayette, massive above, mottled 8 to 15
feet below the surface, and more or less definitely bedded below;
Phoenix, or Lively, on the opposite side of the river, is built on a higher
terrace of bronze-tinted loam, here contaiidng moderately abundant
disseminated pebbles, and the many excellent exposures in the rail¬
way and street cuttings well display the stratification of its lower
portion. The village of Girard, opposite Mill Creek from Phoenix,
and on the western river bank, abounds in exposures; and north and
northeast of Columbus, on the Georgia side, a broad terrace, built of
materials similar to those displayed in Phoenix, stretches for 5 miles.
Down the river the principal terrace level widens to 4 or 5 miles at
Fort Mitchell, where it is overlooked by a 100-foot scarp, marking the
margin of the general upland of eastern Alabama; and scarp and ter¬
race are built of almost exactly identical material and display almost
exactly identical structure and texture throughout many excellent ex¬
posures.

On examining the materials composing the formation at Columbus,
certain new features appear. As usual, the upper part of the deposit is
orange tinted loam, massive, rock-like, undergoing superficial cementa¬
tion ou weathering, and flecked or streaked with white; but the color is
lighter than in Mississippi, the proportion of sand is smaller, the sand
grains are coarser and more angular, and the flecks and streaks of white
are no longer of siliceous clay or pulverulent amorphous silica but of
kaolinic clay or kaolin. The lower portion of the formation displays a
bedding as distinct as the stratification of Mississippi, but the bed¬
ding is simply a separation of the loam into heavy, rock-like ledges
parted by leaves of clay, sand, and gravel, quite unlike the inter -
stratification (with occasional cross-lamination) of sands and clays in
the western part of the terrane; so, too, the materials of the intercalated
clay leaves are changed — instead of the siliceous pottery clays of Mis¬
sissippi and Tennessee they are chiefly a kaolin-like material, with
occasional quartz crystals and mica scales included; and the pebbles
are no longer of chert, as in Mississippi and Tennessee, or even the
mixture of cherts and siliceous dolomites found on Tuscaloosa River, but
mainly of granular quartz with occasional well worn bits of quartzite.

The exposed thickness of the formation about Columbus is generally
10 to 30 feet; and the combined exposures indicate that while the thick¬
ness is exceedingly variable it probably reaches a maximum of 50 or
75 feet.

Over the upland of southeastern Alabama the formation generally

M'GEE.[

FEATURES IN EASTERN ALABAMA.

479

prevails, and it is noteworthy that it is much more continuous on the
Cretaceous terranes toward the Chattahoochee River than in western
Alabama, while it is much more continuous on the Eocene terranes in
western Alabama than toward the Chattahoochee — on the Cretaceous
terrane in the east it is generally unbroken save where trenched by water¬
ways, while in the west it is reduced to isolated remnants ; on the Eocene
terrane in the east it is greatly tattered by erosion, while in the west it
prevails over most of the surface except along the water lines. This
inequality in distribution, be it noted, is not dependent on unequal alti¬
tude above base-level, for the highest and most rugose part of southern
Alabama is the well mantled Cretaceous terrane and the next highest
above local base-level is the nearly equally well-mantled Eocene terrane ;
while the denuded areas, both Cretaceous and Eocene, lie low with
respect to present and past base-levels. The distribution is not, how¬
ever, without law : Where the subterrane is calcareous, the Lafayette
mantle is mostly gone; where the subterrane is made up of friable
sands, there the Lafayette mantle is deeply tattered; where the
subterrane is clay, particularly if the clay be somewhat siliceous,
there the mantle maintains its integrity. And this law of distribution
is not confined to southern Alabama, but is displayed in even more
strongly marked fashion in eastern Mississippi, and is, indeed, more
or less definitely revealed throughout the entire extent of the deposit.

Along the Chattahoochee River about Columbus, and southward
nearly or quite to the confluence of the Flint, the Lafayette deposits
are not concealed by the newer Columbia formation save along the rivers,
which are all flanked by the ‘‘second bottom” loams characteristic of
the rivers of the eastern Gulf slope. These loams are well displayed
immediately opposite the city of Columbus, as already indicated (Fig. 28) ;
and it is particularly noteworthy that they rise little higher above the
river in its lower reaches than at the fall line. About Eufala, as gen¬
erally in southeastern Alabama, the Lafayette loams are more or less
conspicuously stratified by reason of a linear arrangement of the white
kaolinic matter elsewhere appearing in fortuitously distributed flecks
and pellets. Yet it retains the habit of weathering into massive, rock¬
like buttresses, case-hardened as to surface, separated by miniature
storm-cut runnels. The characteristic aspect is illustrated in PI. xxxv,
which is a mechanical reproduction of a photograph by Dr. Eugene A.
Smith.

In the vicinity of Columbus, particularly on Mill Creek, between
Phoenix and Girard, the Lafayette rests, either with or without marked
unconformity, on the Potomac (Tuscaloosa) arkosic sand and clay ; the
materials of the terrace east of the river and north of Columbus gen¬
erally lie on the eroded surface of the Piedmont gneiss ; within 2 or 3
miles south of Columbus the Lafayette rests uncomformably (though
sometimes the unconformity is inconspicuous or even imperceptible) on
the sands of the Eutaw; while still farther southward it reposes with

480

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

like unconformity successively on tlie Ripley, the various divisions of
the argillaceous Eocene (Ililgard’s Lignitic), the White limestone of
Smith and Johnson, and the Miocene limestones. About Columbus the
materials of the basal part of the Columbia, of the Lafayette, of the
Potomac (Tuscaloosa), and sometimes of the Eutaw, contains certain
common elements and sometimes approximate in composition so closely
that they may be discriminated only by structural characteristics; and
in some of the most conspicuous exposures near the mouth of the Mill
Creek the Lafayette and the Potomac (Tuscaloosa) have not been cer¬
tainly discriminated.

In general, the features displayed on the Chattahoochee River about
Columbus are maintained over the Georgia lowland, and the phenomena
are repeated with little variation on each river as it discharges from
the Piedmont plateau to the lower lands stretching thence to the ocean.

The exposures about the falls of the Ocmulgee River at Macon are
even more numerous than those on the Chattahoochee. The lower por¬
tion of Macon is built on a u second-bottom” plain, but the residence part
of the city stands on the ampliitheater-like slopes semicircling the ter¬
race occupied by the low-lying business portion; and in every street and
country roadway, in every excavation on railways entering the city from
the west, northwest, and even from the southeast, the orange-tinted loams
are well displayed, always with the prevailing color and frequently with
characteristic structure; so the roads, streets, railways, and hill slopes
of most of Macon gleam red against the dark green background of the
pine-clad hills. Here as elsewhere the material is a loam, containing a
sufficient element of clay to produce considerable coherence, orange
red or sometimes brick-red above, mottled orange yellow at greater
depths. Here as elsewhere the formation is characterized by irregular
stratification and rather obscure cross-bedding in its lower portion, the
structure lines being marked sometimes by ferruginous crusts and some¬
times by lines of pebbles or gravel grains, but more frequently by sheets
of white plastic clay, sometimes continuous, sometimes in layers of dis¬
tinct pellets. Here as elsewhere the upper part of the deposit is mas¬
sive, and displays in an eminently satisfactory manner the distinctive
semiglazing or case-hardening by which the formation is generally char¬
acterized. Here as elsewhere the deposit is frequently pebbly, the pebbles
being either arranged in lines of stratification or accumulated in pockets
and in beds, sometimes assorted by size, and as usual the pebbles
are commonly disseminated above and commonly bedded below; and
here, as at Columbus, the pebbles consist predominantly of moderately
well rounded and subangular fragments of quartzite and quartz, rang¬
ing from 3 inches in diameter downward, and there are in addition a few
granitoid fragments.

The relations of the Lafayette formation to the Columbia u second
bottoms ” are not well displayed, but the relations to the Potomac are
admirably displayed in many exposures. The eminence in the western

TYPICAL EXPOSURE OF THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION, NEAR THE CHATTAHOOCHEE RIVER.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXXV

LIBRAS V

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

M'OEE.]

FEATURES IN CENTRAL GEORGIA.

481

part of the city known as Primrose Hill is a cusp of Potomac arkose
only veneered with the Lafayette, and the street cuttings and gullies
by which it is laid open along many lines display the two formations in
contact, sometimes conformable in structure and concordant in mate¬
rials to such an extent that they may not be demarked, but elsewhere
strongly unconformable in structure and discordant in composition. Pre¬
cisely similar relations are displayed in the half dozen or more excellent
exposures on the Georgia Southern Railway in the western part of the
city, in some of which the formations are quite distinct, while in others
they intergrade.

Over the divide between the Ocmulgee and the Oconee the Lafay¬
ette appears in many exposures ; east of the Oconee it reappears,
but it is noteworthy that on departing from the fall line the structural
features undergo some modification. Thus about Milieu the upper
member is attenuated, the distinctive coloration weakens, the lower mem¬
ber thickens, reaching 20 feet or more on uplands where the deposit is
most attenuated, and definite stratification supervenes, some lines being
silty and gravel being notably fine or absent ; but on returning to the
fall line the normal fall-line features recur, as in the fine exposure near
Green’s Cut (10 miles south of Augusta), where the usual aspect of the
massive loam is well displayed. At this point the deposit is excep¬
tionally pebbly, to the extent, indeed, that it has been largely worked as
gravel for railway ballast, the pebbles ranging from 2 inches down, the
most abundant dimensions being § to 1^ inches; the materials are pre¬
dominantly quartz and quartzite, with no chert, the prevailing form be¬
ing fairly well rounded, and the pebbles are accumulated in layers, some¬
times discontinuous, in which it is occasionally cross-bedded, though
even in these layers the gravel is nowhere clean, the pebbles being
simply disseminated closely throughout a matrix of loam, just as the
finer sand grains are disseminated through a clay matrix in the loamy
parts of the formation.

In central Georgia the Lafayette forms the surface on the Ocmulgee
and Oconee rivers, save where the “second bottoms ” overlap it ; but
farther eastward, on theOgecliee as well as toward the Savanna, the dis¬
tinctive “ second bottoms ” proper disappear, and the coast-sand mantle
stretching up from the seashore, and along the Savanna finally over¬
laps the Lafayette and extends upon the Piedmont gneiss, from which
the orange-tinted formation has been removed, if it was ever deposited.
The subjacent formations are, toward the fall line, the Potomac and the
Piedmont gneiss, and toward the coast the Eocene and Miocene for¬
mations discriminated by Lougliridge and others.

In southern Georgia and in northern Florida the Lafayette is the pre¬
vailing surface deposit, though it has been deeply and broadly trenched
by all the larger rivers and sometimes fails over the divides, particu¬
larly on the calcareous terranes; and while the areas in which it fails
are sometimes such as to indicate erosion by dendritic drainage systems,
12 geol— — 31

482

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

there are many cases in which its remnants assume amphitheatral or
even complete saucer-shaped forms, indicating that the destruction was
wrought at least in part by leaching or by subterranean drainage, or by
both combined. In southwestern Georgia, e. g., about Thomasville, the
characteristic orange tinted or brick-red loams (in this direction the
colors strengthen) are not concealed by the coastal sands of the Columbia
epoch, except about the lower levels ; but in southeastern Georgia there
is a more or less continuous mantle of these sands, by which the La¬
fayette is commonly buried from sight. In passing southward from
Thomasville the features of this formation and its relations to the Co¬
lumbia are well displayed. Thus, at Monticello, Florida, the railway sta¬
tion well exposes 6 or 7 feet of friable brown sand, structureless or
obscurely stratified in its lower portion; below, 8 or 9 feet of massive
brick-red loam, hardening on exposure in such manner as to stand with¬
out cribbing or walling; then 8 feet of interbedded brown loam, white
clay, and gray silt, the sandy layers bearing water. The tank well lo¬
cated near by but at lower level displays a like succession, save that the
Columbia sand bed is thicker, more definitely stratified, and somewhat
silty toward the base. The railway cutting a mile north of the town,
and at somewhat higher level, displays the case-hardened sands pass¬
ing down into interbedded white clays and brown sands, but the veneer
of friable Columbia sand here fails, as it does everywhere above a cer¬
tain level varying from place to place yet consistent throughout the
various exposures in each locality. These Monticello exposures exem¬
plify the conditions prevailing over a considerable territory in south¬
western Georgia and western Florida.

Farther westward, near the Appalachicola River, the same features
and relations continue, save that the relief increases until the Lafayette
forms a series of 100-foot crests, peaks, spurs, and amphitheaters over¬
looking flat-bottomed valleys and lowlands lined with the coastal
sands. Thus, at Tallahassee the flat-lying lowlands stand 100 feet
above tide, while the rugose uplands rise 100 feet higher; and the
ancient city of Tallahassee is built on one of the highest of these hills,
protected by a rampart of only lesser elevations, and all overlook
toward the south, southwest, and southeast, the lowlands, first of sand
and then of marsh, which stretch thence to the coast. The Tallahassee
hill is roofed and protected by a thick sheet of massive brick-red loam,
so obdurate that when well drained it may be mistaken for brick pave¬
ment; as usual, this superior member of the formation is flecked and
streaked with white everywhere below the reach of active weathering,
and down to this limit and at greater depths in the exposed faces the
deposit is dotted or even crowded with ferruginous nodules analogous
to those about Grand Bay, and here, too, revealed in similar process of
formation in deep exposures. The massive member is 10 to 20 feet thick ;
below, it is first diversified by pellets or irregular masses of white silico-
argillaceous material which increase in number and size and expand

M'GEE.]

FEATURES IN WESTERN GEORGIA.

483

into sheets downward, until the deposit gradually becomes an inter-
stratified mass of brown sand and white matter; at still greater depths
the white layers increase in number and the brown sand practically
disappears, and the exposures strongly suggest, if they do not clearly
indicate, that the white matter passes without definite break into the
Neocene argillaceous limestone of western Florida. This transition, be
it noted, however, is no more complete than that frequently observed
farther northward between the Lafayette and the Potomac (Tuscaloosa),
and does not necessarily indicate identity, but more probably a rear¬
rangement and intermixing of the materials.

Another link between the Lafayette and the Neocene limestone at
Tallahassee is found in chemical constitution ; for the later deposit is
slightly phosphatic, as is the earlier in richer measure. Four nodules
were collected as follows, viz : (1 ) A structureless ferruginous nodule, such
as those formed in so great abundance in the upper part of the deposit,
2 feet below the surface; (2) a ferruginous nodule of similar appear¬
ance, 15 feet below the surface ; (3) a ferruginous nodule of like character,
28 feet below the surface in a deep street cutting; (4) a light-colored
nodule of similar appearance, 40 feet below the surface. The first nodule
came from the massive brick-red phase of the formation ; the second came
from the mottled orange yellow but essentially structureless phase of
the formation ; the third came from the part of the formation consisting
of brown and drab sands separated by white partings ; and the fourth
came from the basal portion of the formation in which the white bands
predominate. The four samples were tested for phosphoric acid by
Prof. Norman Eobinson, the State chemist, with the following results:
The first gave a trace; the second gave a decided trace (estimated by
Prof. Robinson at one-fourth of 1 per cent) ; the third gave a much more
decided trace (estimated at one-half of 1 per cent); while the fourth
gave a considerable element of phosphoric acid (roughly estimated at
10 per cent).

The thickness of the formation at Tallahassee may not be accurately
given, first, because it has been completely denuded from half the area,
and second, because the remnants probably mantle nuclei of older
formations. Single exposures displayed in the street cuttings and gul¬
lies down the slopes of the Tallahassee hill aggregate over 60 feet ; but
it is probable that this is below rather than above the original mean
thickness of the formation.

Passing eastward from the longitude of Tallahassee the relief dimin¬
ishes, and beyond the Suwanee the entire surface is mantled by coast
sands of the Columbia so deeply that the orange tinted formation seldom
appears, and when it occasionally crops out in deeper waterways or rail¬
way excavations toward the Atlantic coast its aspect is so changed that
it might hardly be identified without the aid of intermediate exposures
Yet the progressively varying aspects are united by occasional out¬
crops from the Suwanee to the St. Johns, where it is commonly sheeted
by shifting sands, to which the Columbia is there reduced.

484

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

The Lafayette is well exposed on the southern bank of St. Mary’s
River, near Traders Hill. Here the upper part isorange brown or drab
and massive for a few feet, but it quickly becomes regularly bedded, the
heavier layers of brown or gray clayey loam separated by leaves of
gray silt and brown or drab sand. It is again displayed in many rail¬
way cuttings about Way cross, where the upper massive member is bet¬
ter developed yet decidedly less distinctly massive, orange-tinted, and
casehardened than in central Georgia, while the lower part is always
stratified. It is revealed to a depth of 40 feet or more at Doctortown
in a railway cutting through a natural bluff overlooking the Alta-
malia; here the upper member is ill developed or absent and the
mass is stratified throughout, consisting of alternations of brown loam
and white silt above; and in the lower part of the exposure these be¬
come, respectively, blue or gray clay and light colored sand. Still farther
northward the formation approaches within 10 miles of the sea islands
and inlets in the Cherokee Ridge on the southern side of the Savanna.
The upper massive member is fairly displayed here, though orange yel¬
low rather than of the characteristic color, while the lower portion con¬
sists of stratified sand with fine gravel disposed in sheets.

Superb exposures of the Lafayette, displaying the usual fall-line
features, occur on the Savanna River about Augusta. The characters
and structural relations here represent those exemplified at Columbus
and Macon, save that the “second bottom” phase of the Columbia is
replaced by a series of sandy terraces running up into the prevailing
coastal sands. Thence northward, across the divide separating the
Savanna from the Santee system, the orange-tinted loam prevails,
sometimes forming the surface, sometimes veneered with Columbia
sands, which here attain the maximum altitude of over GOO feet above
tide. Sometimes the formation is distinct, but in many exposures it
consists partly of rearranged glauconitic sands of the Eocene, and may
hardly be discriminated from that deposit ; and in some cases the two
deposits appear in the same exposure, the one characterized by pebbles
and the other by fossils, yet intergrade so perfectly that no line can be
drawn between.

About Aiken the Lafayette rests sometimes on the Potomac (Tusca¬
loosa) and sometimes on the Piedmont crystallines. On the divides the
orange-tinted deposit generally laps far over the crystallines and deepens
in color, sometimes to dark brick or turkey red, simulating in tint and to
some extent in texture, in composition, and in dearth of structure the dis¬
integrated crystallines of South Carolina. About the confluence of the
Congaree and Wateree the Potomac reappears, and is unconformably
overlain by the Lafayette, and this in turn sometimes by Columbia sands.
The typical relation of these is illustrated in PL xxxvi, which is re-
produced from a photograph taken by Prof. J. A. Holmes and Dr.
R. H. Lougliridge, the exposures being an abandoned railway cutting

RELATIONS OF COLUMBIA, LAFAYETTE, AND POTOMAC FORMATIONS, COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XXXVI

STOEE.]

FEATURES IN SOUTH CAROLINA.

485

a mile east of the State house in Columbia. Here the coastal sands of
the Columbia are, as usual, friable and light brown or drab in color;
the Lafayette is orange red, flecked or streaked with white, semi-glazed
or caseliardened, and therefore massive and rock-like in aspect and
irregularly jointed, with considerable accumulations of pebbles toward
the base; the Potomac is obscurely and irregularly stratified arkose,
containing a few scattered pebbles.

In central South Carolina the Lafayette formation is so frequently
displayed, either forming the general surface or cropping out from be¬
neath the erosion-tattered Columbia mantle in natural and artificial cut¬
tings, that its half-concealed surface may be projected with much confi¬
dence : It is an autogenetically carved peneplain, with the relief generally
running from 50 to 100 feet, the slopes strong or even steep toward the
larger rivers, weaker on smaller streams, and quite gentle over the
divides, the configuration being thus strongly contrasted with that
displayed among the Tallahassee hills or in the Fort Adams region.
Over this characteristic surface the coastal sands of the Columbia are
spread, once unquestionably as a continuous mantle; but while the
streams born of the post-Columbia emergence commonly inherit the es¬
tates of their progenitors, they are sometimes larger, sometimes smaller,
sometimes differently placed, and sometimes differently affiliated with
neighboring families; and so the new drainage has here and there laid bare
the old surface, and here and there left it deeply mantled by sand beds,
themselves sculptured into autogentic forms. This relation was long
ago perceived by laymen, and central South Carolina was classed agri¬
culturally as “red hills” and “ sand hills,” the former representing the
denuded Lafayette and the latter representing the sculptured Columbia
mantle. It is perhaps unfortunate that Tuomey, finding the characteris¬
tic Lafayette sometimes to merge with the decomposed Eocene green¬
sands of which it is in part made up, assigned the entire red-hill region
to the Eocene.

In eastern South Carolina the land lies low and exposures are few and
far between, but all the deeper railway cuttings, and here and there a
stream, show that the prevailing surfaceward structure of the “high
grounds” comprises, first, a sheet of loose, friable, brown, drab, yellow,
or gray sand 5 to 20 feet in thickness, strongly demarked by texture
(though not otherwise) from a subjacent bed of loamy sand commonly
orange yellow in color; and although the correlation is less decisive
than might be wished, it is almost certain that the upper deposit repre¬
sents the Columbia sands and the lower the Lafayette. The land lies
too low to expose the basal part of the inferior deposit, and its relations
to the phospliatic beds found nearer the coast and commonly referred
to the Pliocene have not yet been ascertained.

The Lafayette formation has been studied in detail in North Carolina by
Holmes, who finds its features concordant in general with those displayed
in South Carolina and Georgia on the south and in Virginia on the north.

486

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

It floors an extensive area running halfway from the foil line to the coast,
where it commonly passes beneath the Columbia sands and loams and
so disappears; it rests uncomformably on Piedmont crystallines and on
the Potomac toward the fall line, and overlies the Eocene and Miocene
deposits nearer the sea; it is markedly distinct from the estuarine phase
of the Columbia formation, which is fairly well developed in the northern
part of the State; but in some localities, principally in the southern
part of the State, it has not yet been so well discriminated as might be
desired from the overlying coastal sands constituting the interstream
phase of the Columbia.

For some distance east of the fall line in northern North Carolina, i. e.,
over the Hatteras axis, which has long been a conspicuous feature in
eastern American physiography, the formatioi displays certain pecul-
forities in structure and texture : Even near the fall line the deposit is
parted into moderately regular beds, sometimes of sand, again of clay,
but commonly of loam of varying consistency; and this bedding may
extend quite to the surface, as on the Appomattox River. Still more
noteworthy is the change in texture. Thus, at Wilson there is the
local partition into several regular and rather heavy (2 to 5 feet) strata,
the usual orange hue, and the usual distribution of quartzite and quartz
pebbles either throughout the several strata or in banks or pockets ; but
the lowermost stratum (exposed in the northern part of town) is largely
composed of arkose, slightly rearranged and sparsely intermixed with
fine quartz pebbles, and there is some admixture of arkose in the superior
layers. Then, half a mile south of Wilson a 9-foot railway cutting dis¬
plays the usual heavy and moderately regular bedding, and the usual hues
both in weathered and un weathered strata; while the lowest exposed bed
(4 or 5 feet thick) is made up of interlaminated gray or white clay and
orange or reddish loam, the clay being fine and plastic, the loam rather
sandy and massive within each lamina, and the laminae sensibly hori¬
zontal and ranging from an eighth of an inch to half an inch for the
clay, and a quarter of an inch to an inch or more for the loam. Both of
these exceptional aspects of the formation are exhibited in various ex¬
posures in this region; both resemble in some measure characteristic
aspects of the Potomac formation seen in eastern Virginia; and it is
significant that the Potomac is not found here (probably by reason of
removal through degradation), that crystalline rocks approach and in
the immediate vicinity reach the surface, and so that the Lafayette
probably rests immediately upon the eastward extension of the ancient
Piedmont crystallines.

In Virginia the distinctive sands and clays of the formation are typi¬
cally exposed, as on and near the Appomattox River from its mouth to
some miles west of Petersburg. A mile below Petersburg they are found
at tide level in the river banks ; in the eastern part of the city they ap¬
pear overlying the fossiliferous Neocene beds, midheight of the bluffs;

M'GEE.]

FEATURES IN VIRGINIA.

487

and at the “Crater’' a mile and a half east, in the railway cuttings in
the southwestern part, and on the upland 2 miles west of the city, they
occupy the highest eminences. The zone of outcrop here is at least 30
or 40 miles wide. As in North Carolina, the deposit is a regularly but
obscurely stratified orange-colored clay or sand, sometimes interbedded
with gravel or interspersed with pebbles. Perhaps the best exposure
is at the “Crater” (a pit formed by the explosion of 8,000 pounds of
powder in a mine carried by Federal engineers beneath a Confederate
fort, July 13, 1864). Here the principal material is a dense, tenacious
clay, orange, gray, pink, reddish, and mottled in color, plastic, yet firm
when wet, and so hard and tough when dry that medallons stamped
from it as souvenirs are as durable as rock; indeed, the well known
strategetic measure to which the “Crater” is due was rendered suc¬
cessful by the firmness and tenacity of the clay through which the en¬
tire mine was excavated, save where it barely touched the subjacent
fossiliferous glauconitic sands of the Neocene. At Butterfield Bridge,
in the southwestern part of Petersburg, the railway cutting exposes
some 20 feet of plastic clay (like that found at the “Crater”), pebbly
and sandy clay, and cross-laminated clayey sand, all predominantly
orange-colored, in alternating beds, and it is noteworthy that here, as
at so many other points, flakes and lines of white plastic clay, similar to
those of the Potomac arkose, are occasionally included in the formation.
This clay corresponds in composition to that found in the Lafayette
loams east and northeast of Montgomery, and it simulates in appear¬
ance the siliceous clays flecking the loam and expanding into beds in
the embayment. In the vicinity of Richmond the formation is occa¬
sionally exposed toward the summits of the river bluffs, but is there less
conspicuous than the subjacent Neocene, Eocene, and Potomac deposits.
Its features here .are much the same as on the Appomattox, save that
the contained pebbles are larger and more abundant.

Quite recently Mr. N. H. Darton has collected a number of ill pre¬
served molluscan shells from the basal stratified sands of the Lafayette
formation at a point a mile north of Heatlisville, Northumberland
County, Virginia.1 The association is such as to indicate that while
the fossils were probably washed and redeposited from the Chesapeake
formation, they may possibly have been in situ. They are Venus mer-
cenaria , Gnathodon grayii ., and Anomia simplex ("?). Of these the first
ranges in coastal plain deposits from the Neocene to the Columbia, and
continues to flourish to-day; the second is Neocene, but is not found in
the Columbia, nor does it live in this latitude to-day, though abundant
in the Gulf of Mexico; while the third is one of the so-called Pliocene
forms, and is also an associate of the modern oyster. The fossils,
accordingly, are insufficient to fix the place of the formation in the
biotic scale.

“On fossils from the Lafayette formation iu Virginia;” Am. Geol., vol. 9, 1891 (in press).

488

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Near tlie summits of the bluffs overlooking the Rappahannock River
from the southward, a mile or two west of Fredericksburg, the distinctive,
stratified, orange-colored sandy clays are found reposing upon Potomac
sandstone, from which they are readily distinguishable by greater homo¬
geneity, by more complete intermingling of the arenaceous and argilla¬
ceous materials, by more regular stratification, and by the more uniform
and predominantly orange color. They are as readily distinguishable
from the Columbia deposits, on the other hand, by vertical homogeneity,
by comparatively regular stratification, by distinctive color, and by
greater range of altitude, extending, as they do, from tide level to the
highest eminences of the Piedmont escarpment between the Rappahan¬
nock and the Roanoke. At Fredericksburg the deposit is commonly
thin and confined to limited isolated areas, especially at the higher
levels; about the confluence of the Ni, Po, and Ta rivers it forms the
surface over a meridional zone fully 10 miles wide; it is well exposed
in the bluffs of the Taponi, along which it reposes upon the fossiliferous
Eocene; and in the bluffs of the Mattaponi and the Anna rivers, as
well as over the intervening divides, it is the prevalent surface formation,
maintaining the characteristics exhibited at Fredericksburg, save that
it is perhaps more pebbly.

The extension of the Lafayette formation north of the Rappahannock
has recently been traced by Mr. Darton, who thus characterizes it :

It is displayed in the high terraces about Washington, and it caps nearly all the
higher terrace levels of the “ western shore” of Maryland northward to the latitude
of Baltimore. Still farther northward it is confined to outliers on the divides along
the western margin of the coastal plain region, hut at the head of Chesapeake Bay it
extends farther eastward, and, in the high Elk Ridge, caps the Cretaceous and Poto¬
mac formations over a considerable area.

The * * * formation in eastern Virginia consists of light-colored loams of

buff and orange tints, containing streaks and beds of pebbles and coarse sand in
varying proportions and irregular deposition. Northward in Maryland coarser mate¬
rials gradually increase in amount, and in the Washington-Baltimore region and
northward gravel beds predominate. On Good Hope Hill, east of Washington, the
high terrace is capped for some distance by beds consisting mainly of large pebbles
and sand, with a buffloam matrix. Farther eastward the proportion of loam increases
and the pebbles decrease in size and number. In the high terraces extending west¬
ward from Alexandria, in the outliers west of Washington and Baltimore, and gen¬
erally along the crystalline border in Maryland and Delaware, the formation consists
mainly of iron-stained pebbles in a matrix of more or less sandy orange or buff loam.
Thin layers and lenses of ferruginous conglomerates are of frequent occurrence in
the northern Maryland belt, in the capping on Elk Neck, and in the Pennsylvania
and New Jersey outliers. In some cases the formation contains somewhat coarser
materials adjacent to the larger drainage depressions, especially on the Potomac
River, where the pebble beds are particularly noteworthy.

The thickness of the formation is variable, but it averages between 20 and 30 feet.
In Maryland it is generally under 25 feet, but in Virginia it is usually somewhat
thicker than this.1

Tlie structure of tlie formation ou Good Hope Hill, where it is typi¬
cally displayed for this latitude, is illustrated in the photomechanical
Iff. xxxvii, from a photograph fry Mr. Darton.

1 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., vol. 2, 1890, pp. 445-446.

TYPICAL EXPOSURE OF THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

MCGEE.]

THE FEATURES OF THE FORMATION.

489

THE GENERAL FEATURES.

The Lafayette formation may briefly be described as an extensive
sheet of loams, clays, and sands of prevailing orange hues, generally
massive above, generally stratified below, with local accumulations of
gravel along water ways ; the deposit varying in thickness from place to
place, though in such manner that its local thickness expresses the
strength of the local streams ; the materials varying from place to place,
but always in the direction of community of material, first, with that of
theterrane drained by neighboring streams from the Piedmont, Appala¬
chian, and Cumberland uplands, and second, with the older deposit upon
which it lies ; while as a whole the formation maintains so distinctive and
strongly individualized characteristics as to be readily recognized wher¬
ever seen. This distinctive aspect of the formation is to some extent
fortuitous. Thus, the resemblance between the Atlantic slope flecking
and streaking and banding with white and the similar marking in the em-
bayment depends on the accidental resemblance of two chemically and
petrographically diverse materials ; yet this diversity is a minor one, and
the great fact remains that the vast Lafayette formation, the most exten¬
sive in the United States and one of the youngest in the geologic series,
is more uniform, petrographically, than any other formation of even one-
fourtli of its extent throughout the length and breadth of the continent.

The geographic distribution of the Lafayette formation may be stated
either simply and easily in terms of original deposition or in greater
detail and with more difficulty in terms of outcrops.

In general distribution the formation is known to expand and strengthen
southward from a few isolated remnants crowning the central axis of pen¬
insular ]STew Jersey, a few miles south of the Raritan, to a thick deposit
forming a terrane 40 or 50 miles wide on the Roanoke ; to expand thence
southward, in a broad zone, at first widening but afterward narrowing
with the encroachment of the overlapping coastal sands upon its area,
quite across the Carol inas; to form the most conspicuous terrane of cen¬
tral Georgia, where it stretches from the fall line to the inland margin of
the coastal sands all the way from the Savanna to the Chattahoochee ;
to again expand greatly in Alabama with the contraction of the over-
lying coast sands until it forms an essentially continuous terrane stretch¬
ing from the fall line at Montgomery and Tuscaloosa to the waters of
Mobile Bay and to within a dozen miles of the Gulf in the southwest¬
ern corner of the State ; to expand still more in the Mississippi embay-
ment until it overlooks the great river in a practically continuous scarp
from Baton Rouge to the mouth of the Ohio ; to reappear in extensive
remnants beyond the Mississippi in central and southwestern Arkan¬
sas; and to extend over a vast area in northwestern Louisiana and
southeastern Texas, and almost certainly to stretch thence southwest-
ward, in a continuous belt toward the coast and as erosion-tattered rem¬
nants inland, quite to the Rio Grande.

490

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

If the direct observation be supplemented by legitimate and necessary
inference, the formation must be so extended as to bridge the valleys
from which it has been degraded and stretch beneath the various phases
of the Columbia formation well toward the Atlantic and Gulf coasts,
though its seaward extension is doubtless aberrant in composition and
structure, until it merges with the continuous series of offshore Neocene
deposits forming the great submarine shelf which represents the sub¬
merged portion of the coastal plain. With this inferential extension the
field of the formation becomes coextensive with the coastal plain of the
Atlantic and Gulf slopes (including perhaps Florida) and assumes an
area of 200,000 or 250,000 square miles. Over the whole of this vast
area the Lafayette formation must originally have stretched, and over
all of this area, except in the deeper Mississippi embayment and in the
southwesternmost Gulf slope, it must have possessed the wonderfully
uniform composition and structure exhibited to-day by its stream-carved
remnants.

The geographic distribution of the remnants of the Lafayette forma¬
tion represented by present exposures is shown in a general way on the
accompanying PI. xxxviii, in which, be it understood, the observations
are greatly generalized, as the small scale demands, and also extended
by inference, as the incompleteness of the investigation demands.
There are, however, certain features of distribution not represented on
the map which are too significant to be neglected.

Throughout the coastal plain the formation is deeply dissected if not
completely divided by the larger rivers at, and commonly for long dis¬
tances below its inland margin. The tributaries have invaded it as
well, and so, too, have the smaller streams, down to the rivulet and the
storm-filled rill; and thus its entire surface has been sculptured by run¬
ning water in a manner well illustrating the type of configuration else¬
where classed as autogenetic. Now many of the tributaries, as well as
some of the subordinate members of the wide-branching drainage sys¬
tems have, like the principal rivers, cut completely through the formation
and exposed the subterrane over considerable areas; and while the
extent of the destruction of the formation in this manner is of course
dependent upon the local efficiency of the several factors of degradation
(declivity, stream volume, texture of the rockmass, etc.), it is evidently
related in some degree to the character of the subterrane. This rela¬
tion is well exemplified over the hill-lands flanking the Tombigbee and
Alabama rivers on the west. Over the terrane of the Potomac forma¬
tion the Lafayette generally prevails despite the considerable altitude
and high local relief, save in the valleys of the largest rivers; over the
less elevated terrane of the Eutaw sands it is more frequently and
more widely cleft by drainage ways, and its remnants are thinner; over
the next newer formation (the Tombigbee chalk), which lies low and fiat,
the greater part of the Lafayette has been carried away, not only in
the vicinity of the Tombigbee Liver, but all the way from northeastern

MCGEE.]

RELATION TO SUBTERRANE.

491

Mississippi to beyond the Alabama River, so that it is commonly repre¬
sented only by isolated belts and irregular patches which, as Smith has
shown, most frequently lie on northerly slopes; over the terrane of the
Eufaula sands, in which the local relief again increases, the remnants
of the Lafayette quickly increase in number and expand in width until
they once more form the prevailing surface of the uplands, though
the Cretaceous deposits are laid bare along most streams and form the
prevailing lowlands; and over the eight or nine lower Eocene formations
into which the Lignitic of Hilgard has been divided by Smith and John¬
son, and among which clay is the predominant material, the Lafayette
still further expands until it forms almost the entire surface, highland
and lowland alike, save in the valleys of the larger rivers. Still far¬
ther southward lies the great siliceous deposit of the middle Eocene
long known simply as u bulirstone,” now called the Meridian formation;
its rocks are the most obdurate of the entire Neozoic series within the
Gulf slope, and so its general surface is elevated and sculptured into a
complex configuration of pronounced relief and sharp contours; yet
despite these conditions so exceptionally favorable to degradation, the
Lafayette frequently maintains its integrity over considerable areas.
Beyond the hill-land of the buhrstone lies the lowland formed by the
predominantly calcareous newer Eocene formations — the Claiborne,
Jackson, and Vicksburg — over which the Lafayette is again trenched
by almost every waterway, and reduced to ragged remnants only more
extensive than those overlying the Tombigbee chalk; but upon the
silico-argillaceous terrane of the Grand Gulf the remnants once more
expand until they form the greater part of the surface, save along the
larger waterways, as about Hattiesburg in central Mississippi. In short,
the formation is generally preserved over clayey terranes and largely
degraded over calcareous terranes; and this is true not only of the sec¬
tion from Tuscaloosa to Hattiesburg, in Alabama and Mississippi, but
of the formation as a whole — except in the southwestern Gulf slope where
the distribution of degradation is determined by continental attitude
rather than by composition.

It has already been intimated that the composition of the Lafayette
everywhere depends in part upon that of the subterrane, i. e., that its
materials everywhere consist of local elements and erratic elements
combined in varying proportions; and the variable friability and solu¬
bility resulting from this inequality in composition is evidently the
reason for the unequal resistance which the formation has offered to
degradation in various parts of its extent.

In hypsographic distribution the formation ranges from tide level in
Mobile Bay and (probably) from some hundred feet below tide level
in the trans-Mississippi territory to scant 500 feet above tide level over
the Grand Gulf upland in southern Mississippi and fully 600 feet over
the Eocene upland in northern Mississippi, with like altitudes in
central South Carolina, to fully 800 feet at Tennessee Ridge, between

492

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers, to 400 feet over the “grand
chain” of southern Illinois, to 350 feet near Malvern and 250 feet near
Arkadelphia in Arkansas, to some 500 feet at Austin and about the same
near Laredo, and to nearly or quite 1,000 feet near Uvalde and else¬
where near the Rio Grande. This range in hypsographic distribution
evidently represents two factors: The first is unequal submergence, due-
to continental warping during the Lafayette period; the second is in¬
equality in configuration, due to antecedent sculpture: the land sank as
a mass yet warped in sinking, and the deposit was then laid down as a
mantle over a former land surface.

In brief, the hypsographic distribution of the formation is essentially
identical with that of the coastal plain, save that its northern exten¬
sion has been degraded extensively and that its southwestern extension
has been degraded only at the higher levels, and save that the formation
extends a little farther inland than the older Neozoic formations, over¬
lapping for a few miles of distance and a few yards of altitude upon
contiguous provinces.

In several exposures on the Appomattox River at and below Peters¬
burg the fluvial phase of the Columbia formation (as developed in the
middle Atlantic slope) rests unconformably on the surface of the
Lafayette, and a like relation to the interfluvial phase is displayed
in several railway cuttings south of Petersburg. In the excellent sec¬
tion at Columbia the coastal sand phase of the Columbia formation rests
unconformably upon the Lafayette, and at Phoenix, Alabama, the
“second bottom” phase of the newer formation overlaps unconformably
an eroded surface of the older one. In the sections at La Grange, Ten¬
nessee, and Holly Springs, Mississippi, the Columbia loam is separated
from the Lafayette by old soils, and at Port Adams and Ellis Clifts the
Columbia loess with its basal pebble bed lies unconformably on the La¬
fayette, while borings in southeastern Mississippi and the Calcasieu
prairies of Louisiana reach the Lafayette beneath a variable mantle of
the lowest local member of the Columbia formation, i. e., the Port Hud.
son clays. From these exposures in section the two formations are
known to be diverse in age.

The unconformity between the Columbia and the Lafayette be¬
comes more striking when the relations of the two formations to the
larger rivers are considered. Every great waterway traversing the
coastal plain from the fall line to the shore of ocean or Gulf has for
scores of miles trenched the Lafayette to its base and commonly
cut far into older strata, and the orange loams and sands are usually
removed from the bottom and half the sides of the trough whose axis
is marked by the water way; while the same rivers are flanked by ter¬
raced belts of Columbia loam overlying the degraded edges of the
Lafayette and the older formation alike and little invaded by erosion
(except on the Savannah and Congaree), save that of the river channel.
It is true that the Chattahoochee, Tuscaloosa, Tombigbee, and sev-

MrGEE.]

UNCONFORMITIES BOUNDING THE FORMATION.

493

eral other rivers are locally flanked by terraces of Lafayette mate¬
rials, but these terraces appear to be the product of estuarine wave
work about the close of the Lafayette submergence, and are degraded
deeply as the higher portions of the deposit.

Still more striking does the unconformity appear when the general
configuration of the two formations is compared. About Grand Bay
and St. Elmo, in southwestern Alabama, the Columbia forms a smooth,
monotonous, sensibly horizontal plain, while the knolls and uplands of
the Lafayette protruding through the flat-lying sands exhibit well-
developed autogenetic sculpture; over the smooth plains of the Tom-
bigbee chalk the Columbia deposits skirt the rivers in sharp-cut terraces,
while the Lafayette, preserved only in remnants, has been largely re¬
moved by erosion ; on the Oconee and Ogeeehee rivers, in eastern-central
Georgia, the monotonous plains formed by the coastal sands of the
Columbia encroach upon and send tongues and fingers into the ravines
and broader depressions of a boldly sculptured upland of Lafayette
loam, and in North Carolina and Virginia the Columbia is little more
than a flowing mantle masking the more rugged frame work of the older
Lafayette. Indeed, throughout their extent these formations illustrate
the contrast between “ topographic youth” and “topographic old age”
as defined by Chamberlin ; the one is soft-faced, smooth, nearly feature¬
less; the other hard- visaged, furrowed, strong-featured.

Local unconformities between the Lafayette and the several sub¬
jacent Neozoic formations are frequently exposed in section, and general
unconformity with all these formations alike is indicated by its overlap
upon all from the Grand Gulf of the Neocene to the Potomac (Tusca¬
loosa) of the Cretaceous.

Especially significant is the unconformity between the Lafayette
and the Grand Gulf, the youngest of the series. In southern Missis¬
sippi generally, and notably in the vicinity of Tallahoma River about
Ellis ville, there are sufficiently numerous exposures of the Grand Gulf
mudstones to show that the surface of the terrane is one of autogenetic
sculpture, that the Lafayette was laid down as a continuous mantle
upon this sculptured surface, and that after the close of the Lafayette
period the rivers resumed approximately their ancient courses and
have impressed a new and fairly consistent sculpture upon the old.
So, while the newer formation crowns eminences and floors depres¬
sions alike where not profoundly eroded, its mass is little, if any, thicker
on the upland than in the valley, and exposures are as common in the
upper as in the lower slopes; and along the larger rivers the Lafayette
has been frequently removed from the lower slopes, while it yet crowns
the divides and highlands quite to the brows of the bluffs.

Especially significant, too, is the relation between the Lafayette and
the obdurate strata of the Meridian buhrstone, since a rough record
of great continental oscillation is contained therein. Southwest of
Meridian and west of Corinne lies a prominent ridge of the peculiar

494

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

siliceous rocks of this formation, making the divide between the Oka-
tibbee and Chunkee rivers. This divide is a meandering crest, sending
out lateral spurs and culminating in height at every bend, separating a
plexus of steep-sided ravines, coves, and amphitheaters — the whole simu¬
lating a mountain crest line with its peaks, aretes, cols, gorges, and
amphitheaters, save that every summit is blunted. This striking con¬
figuration tells a significant story, but one too long for repetition here —
it suffices that it tells of a time when the land stood higher and the
rivers were hence more energetic than to-day. Now, over this irregular
surface the Lafayette was evidently spread mantle wise, just as over
the qualitatively similar though less strikingly emphasized .surface of the
Grand Gulf; and here as there the post- Lafayette rivers sought their
old courses, and the new drainage system corresponds substantially with
the old 9 but the lower base-level of to-day lias tended to develop a flatter
surface than the old, and while remnants of the orange loam are fre¬
quently caught on the crests and lodged in the amphitheaters, they have
been commonly removed from the higher altitudes and are generally
confined to the lower levels.

Perhaps the Lafayette merges into the phosphate-bearing Pliocene
beds of South Carolina; probably it is continuous with some of the
newer offshore deposits of Florida; unquestionably it represents but
the landward portion of one of a vast series of deposits which at some
distance beyond the present shores of ocean and gulf are unbroken ;
but certainly there is a great unconformity, first, between the Pleisto¬
cene Columbia and the Lafayette; and second, between the Lafayette
and all of the subjacent Neozoic formations yet satisfactorily discrim¬
inated within the Atlantic and Gulf slopes.

The materials of the formation which may confidently be traced to
tliqir sources are (1) pebbles or gravel, (2) arkose, and (3) certain com¬
ponents of the more finely divided matter.

It has been stated incidentally that about the fall line the pebbles of
the Lafayette are in large part identical with those of the Potomac,
and that they are evidently derived therefrom. It has also been stated
incidentally that the pebbles of both Lafayette and Potomac vary from
river to river — quartzite with less quartz on the Susquehanna and Po¬
tomac rivers, quartz on the Rappahannock, quartzite with less quartz
on the J ames and Appomattox, quartz with less quartzite on the Roanoke ;
quartz mainly on the Neuse and Cape Fear, quartz with less quartzite
on the Santee system, quartz and quartzite in nearly equal proportions
on the Savanna, quartz with less quartzite on the Ocmulgee and
Chattahoochee; quartzite, siliceous dolomite, quartz, and chert (in order
of abundance) on the Alabama, siliceous dolomite, chert, and quartzite

1 The history of renewal of buried drainage systems in the eastern Gulf slope is recorded in wonderful
fullness and clearness. Three and even four times has the autogenetically sculptured surface of the
Meridian buhrstone been submerged and mantled with sediments, only to rise and resume more or less
fully its old aspect under the influence of waterways following the old lines. Such resurrected or
palingenetic drainage and sculpture is characteristic of much of Mississippi.

MCGEE.]

COMPOSITION OF THE FORMATION.

495

on the Tuscaloosa anil Tombigbee, and chert on the Pascagoula and
Pearl; chert and some siliceous dolomite with Iron Mountain jaspers
on the Mississippi; chert and novaculite on the Arkansas, novaculite
on the Ouachita, and flint, novaculite, and Kooky Mountain and Oua¬
chita jaspers on Red River; flint and quartzite on the Colorado, and sub¬
local rocks on the San Antonio, with Cretaceous flints and siliceous
limestones and semi-quartzites of the Pecos type toward the Rio Grande;
and this variation goes exactly with the petrographic character of the most
obdurate rocks traversed by the upper reaches of the respective rivers.

Arkose is but a limited anil unusual constituent of the formation, and
is known to occur only under two sets of conditions. It occurs when
the formation rests directly upon crystalline rocks or when these rocks
are exposed in such propinquity as to indicate absence of deposits inter¬
mediate in age, as at Wilson, North Carolina. It occurs, also, in less
abundance and purity, where the Lafayette rests directly upon the
Potomac formation, and the latter is made up largely or exclusively of
the same material, as at Girard, Alabama. In both cases the material
is evidently derived from an adjacent and older formation.

Most conspicuous among the finely divided materials, though com¬
monly unimportant in relative volume, are the components of the white
flecks, streaks, and bands generally characteristic of the upper portion
of the formation, and sometimes enormously developed in the lower
portion. On the Atlantic slope the fine material thus displayed is com¬
monly found to consist chiefly of partly or wholly decomposed feldspar
or kaolin. It is evidently related to the arkose, with which it is some¬
times associated. The material of similar aspect found in the Mississippi
embayment is a finely divided or amorphous silica more or less inter¬
mixed with clayey matter, a part at least of which appears to be a true
silicate of alumina. This material is miiaubtedly (as already suggested
by Hilgard and believed by Salford) a decomposition product of chert,
and its source is to be sought in the disintegration and redeposition of
the great beds of Paleozoic chert which furnish so important an element
of the Lafayette formation throughout the Mississippi embayment. In
Texas the kaolin of the Atlantic slope and the silica of the embayment
are replaced by a less conspicuous chalky material, evidently derived
from the Cretaceous limestones.

Certain striking features in geographic distribution of the Lafay¬
ette formation already pointed out indicate that in many if not all
cases a part of its materials were derived from immediately subjacent
strata, and so that the character of this formation in a measure reflects
that of the subterrane — the characteristic orange loams being excep¬
tionally loamy over loams, exceptionally sandy over sands, exceptionally
argillaceous over clays, and exceptionally calcareous over limestones.

The combined volume of pebbles and gravel, arkose, and the local
elements of finely divided material, however, constitute but the smaller
portion of the entire bulk of the formation.

496

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Most abundant among the materials of which it is composed is the
orange-tinted component of clay-like texture which forms a matrix for
the sand grains in the loam, and for the pebbles in gravel. This material
so closely resembles the usual residuum of secular rock decomposition
as to be frequently mistaken for that product in place. On comparing
this component with the residua of the coastal plain and contiguous
provinces, it is commonly found to combine the characters of the
decomposition products of the subterrane and of the terranes washed
by the upper reaches of the neighboring rivers, and this similarity may
safely be inferred to indicate its derivation. Thus the preponderant
component of the formation may be ascribed to secular decomposition
of a variety of rocks $ and, since residua are always less diverse than
the rocks from which they are derived, the origin of this component
measurably explains the wonderful similarity in aspect in nearly all
portions of the widespread Lafayette formation. The exceptional
aspect of the formation in Texas is unquestionably due to the fact that it
is here made up of mechanically triturated but only partly decomposed
materials.

CHAPTER III.

DEFINITION AND SYNONYMY OF THE FORMATION.

DEFINITION.

In composition the Lafayette formation is a bed of loam, sand, and
gravel, with several minor elements, notably kaolin or kaolinic clay,
comminuted silica or siliceous clay, etc. Tne clay element of the loam
and much of the sand are evidently residua derived from decomposition
of a variety of older rocks, the local characters generally rejecting the
eliaracters of local terranes; the gravel and a part of the sand repre¬
sent the terranes traversed by the upper reaches of the rivers along
which they are found ; and the gravel varies in abundance and size with
the volume, declivity, etc., of these rivers.

In geographic distribution the Lafayette formation coincides approxi¬
mately with the coastal plain of the southeastern United States.

In liypsograpliic distribution the formation ranges from altitudes of
700 or 800 feet to probably some distance below tide level.

In thickness the Lafayette deposits range from a mere veneer over
many interstream tracts to 200 feet or more about the mouth of the Mis¬
sissippi 5 and in general the thickness varies directly with the volume of
neighboring rivers and inversely with the inland extension. The forma¬
tion has, however, been degraded from considerable areas, particularly
along the larger water ways.

In structural relation it is separated from the newer Columbia forma¬
tion by the strongest unconformity of the coastal plain, an unconform¬
ity representing degradation of probably half the volume of the Lafay¬
ette formation and profound trenching of subjacent formations along
the larger water ways j and it is separated from all of the underlying
formations by a noteworthy unconformity of such character as to indi¬
cate that during pre-Lafayette time the coastal plain was a land surface
and was wrought into a configuration much like that existing to-day.

In structural composition the formation is a unit, varying from place
to place in local characters yet indivisible throughout its area of 250,000
square miles, save on arbitrary grounds.

Its position in the biotic scale is unknown, its meager flora combin¬
ing Laramie (Cretaceous) and Pleistocene or modern features, and its
still more meager fauna representing the entire Neocene.

In genesis it is a littoral deposit of materials carried into the Atlantic
Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico by rivers still in existence, when the land
12 GrEOL - 32 197

498

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

stood from 200 to 800 feet lower tlian to-day, and when the waters of
ocean and gulf extended from 50 to 500 miles inland of the present
coast.

In age the Lafayette formation is many times older than the earliest
known Pleistocene deposit, and much newer than any other well defined
formation of the coastal plain. If the Cenozoic be not made to include
the Pleistocene, and if the age be then divided into equal portions called
Eocene and Neocene, and if then the Neocene be divided into ten equal
parts the Lafayette period may be supposed to correspond with the
eighth or perhaps with the seventh or the ninth of these parts.

SYNONYMY.

The Lafayette formation, as now defined, was first discriminated in
northern Mississippi in 1855 and 1856 by Dr. E. W. Hilgard, and was
named by him after Lafayette County, in which it is typically devel¬
oped. It was then considered Quaternary (or Pleistocene).1

About the same time Dr. J. M. Safford recognized the same deposits
in western Tennessee, but by reason of the rarity of exposures in the
then little settled tract, and by reason of the hasty character of the
reconnaissance during which it was observed, he combined it with cer¬
tain petrographically similar but much older deposits. The several
deposits were united under the name u Orange Sand group,” and on the
ground of the diagnostic features displayed by some of the lower beds,
all were referred to the Cretaceous.2

A few years later Dr. Hilgard published officially the results of his
studies of the formation in Mississippi ; and in this document he adopted
Dr. Saftord’s designation for the deposit, but gave reasons for referring
it to the Quaternary rather than the Cretaceous. In the thinly popu¬
lated and generally wooded condition of the country at that time expo¬
sures were less frequent and smaller than now, and in consequence the
definition of “Orange Sand” was so extended as to include deposits both
newer and older than those of the type county; e. g., the Columbia gravel
bed at Natchez and at other points in Mississippi, and the Cretaceous
sands and clays with lignitic intercalations at Pocahontas, Tennessee.3
Subsequently he recognized corresponding deposits in Louisiana, ex¬
tended to them the name Orange Sand, and referred them, like their
Mississippi correlatives, to the Quaternary; and then and later he in¬
ferred the extension of the deposit not only throughout the lower Mis¬
sissippi region, but throughout the coastal plain, even along the Atlantic
border.

A few years later Dr. Safford revised and extended his survey of
western Tennessee, and in his official report on the geology of the State
expressed recognition of the fact that a portion of the beds included by

1 Am. Geologist, 1891, vol. 8, p. 130.

" Geological reconnaissance of Tennessee, 1856, pp. 148, 162.

3 Geology ancl Agriculture of Mississippi, 1860, p. 16.

MCGEE.]

NOMENCLATURE OF THE FORMATION.

499

him in the “Orange Sand group” belong to the Cretaceous; and he
accordingly modified the primary definition, excluding the lower por¬
tion of the original group. At the same time he substituted the name
“Lagrange group” for the newly defined series, and pointed out its
distinctness as a whole from the “Orange Sand” of Dr. Hilgard.1 As
thus defined the “Lagrange group” of western Tennessee was dimin¬
ished in vertical extent as compared with the original “Orange Sand
group;” yet it included not only the distinctive deposit of Lafayette
County, Mississippi, but also a portion of the subjacent deposits now
commonly classed with the Lignitic. The entire group was referred to
the Eocene on the basis of the characters displayed by the lower beds.

Meantime and later the same series of deposits was recognized in
Alabama, and was described in detail in different official reports and
other publications, notably by Dr. Eugene A. Smith, and Dr. Hilgard’s
name and his reference to the Quaternary were retained. For many
years the designation was applied to the whole of a vaguely defined
series of deposits which was subsequently divided by Dr. Smith and
Mr. Lawrence C. Johnson, the lower beds being included in the Tusca¬
loosa formation, which was referred to the early Cretaceous, while Hil-
gard’s name and age reference were restricted to the remaining upper
portion.2

In 1886 the formation was discriminated in tide- water Virginia by
Prof. Fontaine, Mr. Lester F. Ward, and the present writer. In 1888
it was defined and briefly described in print by the writer, and, in
the absence of specific data concerning its southern extension, it was
named, from the river of typical development in the middle Atlantic
slope, the “Appomattox formation,” the age then assigned being sub¬
stantially that now recognized.3 A year later the formation was traced
southward through the Caroliuas, Georgia, and Alabama, and into south¬
eastern Mississippi, and it was soon after described at some length, the
middle Atlantic slope name and the age reference being retained.4
Still later the formation was traced throughout Mississippi and western
Tennessee and Kentucky, as well as into Arkansas, and was completely
identified with the deposits originally discriminated and described by
Hilgard in Lafayette County, Mississippi ; but in view of the uncertain
definition of the series of deposits designated by the terms “Orange
Sand” and “Lagrange,” the name applied in the typical Atlantic slope
locality was retained, the age reference also remaining unchanged.5

Meantime Safford restored the term “ Orange Sand,” but with modi¬
fied definition; the name was now restricted to a superficial or subloam
deposit of sand and gravel, apparently corresponding with the basal
gravel bed of the Columbia, in western Tennessee, and probably cor¬
responding in part also with the “ Bluff gravel” of his 1869 report.6

1 Geology of Tennessee, 1869, pp. 150, 166, 424. 6 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., 1890, vol. 2, pp. 2-6.

2 Bull. IT. S. Geol. Survey No. 43, 1887, pp. 95 et seq. 6 Agricultural and geological map of Tennes-

3 Am. Jour. Sci., 3d ser., 1888, vol. 35, p. 328-330. see, issued by the Commissioner of Agricul-

* Ibid., 1890, vol. 40, pp. 15-41. ture (J. M. Salford, State geologist), 1888.

500

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Meantime also Dr. E. H. Lougliridge recognized the formation in
western Kentucky ; and impressed by the pseudo unconformity between
the superior massive member and the inferior stratified member, and
impressed also by the similarity between the gravel beds of the formation
and the Columbia gravel beds derived therefrom, he divided it, com¬
bining the Columbia gravels ( S afford’ s Orange Sand) and the superior
member of the Lafayette as the “ stratified drift,” which was assigned to
the Quaternary, and setting apart the lower member as the “Lagrange”
which was referred doubtfully to the early Tertiary.1

About the same time the formation was recognized in Arkansas by
Mr. Eobert T. Hill, and at least a distinctive phase of it was designated
the “Plateau gravel,” which was considered post-Miocene and ante-
Pleistocene, and was correlated in a general way with Hilgard’s “ Orange
Sand.”2

During the same period the deposits were discriminated from the
Pleistocene in southern Illinois, Kentucky, and elsewhere by President
T. C. Chamberlin and Prof. E. D. Salisbury, and were classed and des¬
ignated as “Tertiary gravel;3 but, by implication at least, such newer
gravel beds as the basal member of the Columbia at Katchez were
thrown into the same category.4

Subsequently Mr. Kelson H. Darton discriminated the formation in
tide- water Maryland, identifying it with certainty in the isolated rem¬
nants of a once continuous mantle stretching nearly or quite across
this State, and with some doubt still farther northward. He retained
for it the name “Appomattox,” and referred it doubtfully to the Plio¬
cene, recognizing its separation from the Columbia above and the Ches¬
apeake below by noteworthy unconformities representing considerable
erosion intervals.5

Still later, apparently corresponding deposits were recognized hi
Texas by Dr. E. A. P. Penrose; they were named the “Fayette beds,”
and were provisionally correlated with the Grand Gulf formation of
Mississippi and Louisiana, and referred to the later Tertiary.6

About this time certain gravels of eastern Arkansas were described
by Prof. E. Ellsworth Call, correlated with the “Orange Sand” of Hil-
gard, and referred to the Tertiary;7 but whether the materials so re¬
ferred represent the Lafayette, or the coarser member of the Columbia,
or both combined, does not fully appear from the description.

With the view of unifying the diversity in nomenclature and harmon¬
izing the discrepant definition of the formation, a conference was held

1 Geol. Surv. of Ky. Kept, on the Jackson Purchase region, 1888, pp. 17 et seq.

2 Ann. Kep. Geol. Surv. of Ark. for 1888, vol. 2, pp. 35 et seq.

3 Am. Jour. Sci., 3d ser., 1891, vol. 40, pp. 359-377.

4 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., 1889, vol. 1, p. 470.

6 Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., 1890, vol. 2, pp. 434, 445-447.

6 First Ann. Kep. of the Geol. Surv. of Texas for 1889-’90, pp. 47, et seq. Since this paper was com¬
posed Mr. E. T. Dumble has announced a division of the Fayette heds, and designated the unconform-
able upper portion the Reynosa marl (communication before the Geological Society of America at Colum¬
bus. December 30, 1891). It is this upper member which represents the Lafayette formation in Texas.

1 Ann. Rep. of the Geol. Surv. of Arkansas, for 1889, vol. 2, pp. 126 et seq.

M'GEE.]

NOMENCLATURE OF THE FORMATION.

501

in San Francisco in June, 1891, in which Dr. Hilgard, Dr. Joseph Le
Conte, Dr. Loughridge and the writer participated in person, and Dr.
Smith and Dr. Safford by correspondence. The outcome of the con¬
ference was the adoption of Hilgard’s original name for the formation.1
This was followed in September, 1891, by extended conference on the
ground in and about the type locality of the formation in Mississippi
and Tennessee, in which Dr. Hilgard, Dr. Safford, Dr. Smith, Frof.
Joseph A. Holmes, Mr. Lester F. Ward, Mr. Robert T. Hill and the
writer participated. The outcome of this conference was substantial
agreement concerning the nomenclature, definition, age and genesis of
the Layfayette formation.

Still later, Dr. J. W. Spencer recognized both the Columbia and the
Lafayette formations in Georgia, but combined them and referred both
to the Pleistocene.2

Accordingly the synonomy may briefly be summarized as follows :
Lafayette = Appomattox <Orange Sand (Hilgard) <Lagrange <Orange
Sand (Safford.) Lafayette = Appomattox = ( ?) Fayette beds > Plateau
gravel < Tertiary gravel.

Summarized graphically, the synonomy may be expressed as in the
following table, in which the names cover the age references of the
authors, and the braces the ages now assigned to the deposits compre¬
hended under the names :

Um. Geologist, 1891, vol. 8, pp. 129-181.

2 Geol. Survey of Georgia, First. Kept, of Progress, 1891, pp. 61-62.

502

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

•1

Lafayette— Columbia,
(Spencer.)

Tusca
(Smith &

Tertiary gra
(Ce

vel and sand, i

11.)

Fayette beds, j
(Penrose.)

Tertiary
(Chamberlin &

gravel. j

Salisbury.) j

Plateau gravel.
(Hill.)

Lagrange.

(Loughridge.)

Stratified drift.
(Loughridge.)

Orange Sand.
(Saftord, 1888.)

Appo¬

mattox.

(Mci

Colum¬

bia.

Lee.)

loosa.

Johnson.)

Orange Sand.

(Smith & Johnson.)

Orange Sand.
(Tuomey, Lyell,
Smith, et al.)

Orange Sand.
(Saftord, 1869.)

;

Orange Sand.
(Hilgard, 1860 and
later.)

;

Orange Sand.
(Saftord, 1856.)

Lafayette.

(Hilgard, 1856.)

Cretaceous.

Eocene.

Neocene.

Pleistocene.

Geochronic synonymy of the Lafayette formation.

CHAPTER IV.

MATERIAL RESOURCES OF THE FORMATION.

STATE OF THE SURVEY.

In the progress of thorough geologic investigation, certain definite
methods are employed and a certain definite succession of steps is com¬
monly followed. In the survey of the coastal plain the method employed
(which is set forth in detail on another page) involves scrutiny of each
feature displayed by every rockmass with a degree of attention depend¬
ing on its magnitude or importance from all points of view ; while at
the same time the relations of the features are sought with a view to
ascertaining the genesis of each element in the rockmass and finally of
the rockmass itself as a basis for classification; for it is held that the
natural or genetic classification is the most widely applicable and the
most useful.

The steps pursued in the investigation are, accordingly, first, recon¬
naissance and discrimination of characteristic features ; second, correla¬
tion, including the elucidation of conditions of genesis as a means
thereto; third, special study and detailed mapping of minor and local
characters. The survey of the Lafayette formation has thus far
reached only the second of these stages, and thus the material resources
of the formation can be stated only in general terms.

SOILS.

Viewed from the agricultural standpoint, the components of the La¬
fayette formation are (1) loam, and (2) sand or gravel; or, analyzed more
exactly, since loam is itself a compound material, (1) that finely divided
and completely oxidized and lixiviated material which is called mud
when abnormally wet and dust when abnormally dry, but for which in
the normal state there is no name among either geologists or laymen ;
(2) sand, and (3) gravel. The finely divided rock matter intermixed
with sand constitutes loam; sand with little or no finely divided matter
forms sand beds; either loam or sand may form a matrix for pebbles
which then forms a gravelly soil; but sometimes the matrix is so scant,
that the gravels are clean and practically removed from the category of
soils.

The superficial member, at least, of the Lafayette formation through¬
out the greater part of the coastal plain is a true loam, i. e., a uniform
admixture of sand and finely divided rock matter. Now, the finer

503

504

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

element is chemically degraded, or reduced toward a condition of chem¬
ical stability, by reason of long exposure to the action of air and
water and the gases of which they are formed, as well as by the agency
of acids liberated by living and decaying plants, etc. So it is in a less
favorable condition for giving fertility than mechanically reduced yet
chemically complex or unstable materials, such as the rock flour pro¬
duced by glacial grinding. Yet, without following closely the extreme
pendulum- s van g of modern opinion that mechanical condition is as
everything and chemical composition as nothing in determining soil
fertility, it may be observed that the usual mechanical composition of
the Lafayette loam is eminently favorable to plant production; it is
friable, yielding readily to plant roots as well as to the agricultural pro¬
cesses; it is pervious, absorbing storm waters greedily, distributing
them through capillarity, and holding them long for gradual consump¬
tion in times of drought; it is permeable, the air circulating freely
through it and thus aiding in the innumerable minute laboratory opera¬
tions of the plant roots, and at the same time maintaining, by one of
the curious cumulative processes of nature, the flocculent and friable
condition of the finer element of the soil. Thus the composition of the
Lafayette is such as to give a soil of fair fertility and, by reason of its
depth and the chemically stable condition of its finer element, of unusual
durability.

The inference as to the character of the Lafayette soil drawn from
composition is sustained by observation and experiment. From the
Appomattox to the Sabine it was primevally clothed with luxuriant pine
forests, and in the Carolinas and Georgia the pines pushed dozens or
scores or even a hundred miles upon the attenuated margin of the
Columbia sand s, sending their long taproots down into the Lafayette loam
below. After settlement the pine forests were replaced by plantations,
which proved always fairly and sometimes highly productive, and in many
localities the fields were found specially adapted to continued cultiva¬
tion of the soil-exhausting tobacco, while in the southern Atlantic and
eastern Gulf States the northward extension of upland cotton culture
generally followed the spread of the orange-tinted loam, whose fertility
the fields amply attest. In Mississippi, indeed, it is a question whether
the cotton fares better on the Lafayette loam, albeit there excep¬
tionally sandy and barren, or on the brown loam of the Columbia,
albeit locally composed largely of ice-ground rock flour; and certainly
it fares best of all on the soils formed by admixture of the two com¬
ponents in equal or subequal proportions.

Going with the excellence of the Lafayette soils there is an actually
or potentially adverse condition worthy of grave consideration: That
mechanical condition which gives friability, perviousness to water, and
permeability to air tends to facilitate erosion when the primeval forest
covering or the natural soil is removed; so that the fields formed of
Lafayette loam are exceptionally liable to rain washing and storm

M'GEE.]

FIRE AND POTTERY CLAYS.

505

gullying. This is especially the case when the upper massive member
is thin and the relief is high, so that the storm waters gain access to
the more friable sands below and invade the loam by sapping. The
‘‘old field” destruction in several Southern States, notably in Mississippi,
is largely due to this condition of the Lafayette soil.

SILICEOUS CLAYrS.

In western Kentucky and Tennessee and in northern Mississippi the
medial portion of the Lafayette formation abounds in peculiar siliceous
clays, commonly blue, gray, or lead colored, but quickly drying snow-
white, which are largely used in the manufacture of low-grade pottery
and are locally used in a smaller way in making finer ware. They are
used also for fire brick, gas retorts and crucibles, and encaustic tiling;
and varieties of the same material are largely used, particularly in
Kentucky, for terra-cotta boards, etc.

The material is largely extracted in western Kentucky, as recently
described by Loughridge;1 it is abundant in quantity and excellent in
quality, and is more or less extensively manufactured in the longitude of
Milan, Jackson, Bolivar, Grand Junction, and Lagrange in Tennessee;
it occurs in equal quantity and purity in northern Mississippi, partic¬
ularly about Holly Springs, Oxford, Grenada, and Duck Hill, and is
manufactured at the first-named town and elsewhere in this State ; and
it is known to extend southward to Fayette and other localities about
the latitude of Katchez.

The material consists chiefly of finely comminuted silica, probably
representing disintegrated Paleozoic cherts derived from central Ten¬
nessee and Kentucky. The composition is fairly indicated by the
analyses of three samples from Hickman County and eight samples from
Ballard County, Kentucky, made by Loughridge.2 They are as follows :

Composition of “ refractory clays” from Kentucky (Loughridge).

County.

X um¬
ber.

Silica.

Alumina.

Ferric

oxide.

Lime.

Mag-

nesia.

Potash.

Soda.

Water,

etc.

Total.

Hickman .

2715

Per cent.
85. 180

Per cent.
10. 260

Per ct.
1. 120

Per ct.
Trace

Per ct.
0. 064

Per ct.
0. 954

Per ct.
0.146

Per ct.
2.276

100. 000

Do .

2162

84. 918

10. 560

1.102

0.572

.108

.651

Undet.

2. 089

100.000

Do .

2161

76. 360

14. 951

2.109

.325

.173

1.171

.125

4.786

100. 000

Ballaril .

2573

73. 240

15. 760

1. 920

.325

.514

1.467

.147

6. 622

100. 000

Do .

2568

74. 840

16. 580

1.400

.269

.209

1.293

.283

5. 126

100. 000

Do .

2104

74. 460

18. 070

1.633

.314

.245

.940

.021

4. 317

100. 000

Do .

2571

63. 840

20. 040

.740

Trace,

.137

.714

.207

8. 322

100. 000

Do .

2105

67. 501

23. 051

2. 109

.257

.065

.412

•020

6. 585

100. 000

Do .

71.940

20. 700

Trace

.370

.350

.630

Undet.

6. 200

100. 190

Do .

2570

76. 540

14. 820

.960

Trace

.331

.926

.229

6. 194

100. 000

Do .

2569

71. 180

20. 800

1.780

Trace

.101

.247

.291

5. 601

100. 000

Mean ....

74. 545

17. 417

1. 352

. 221

.209

.855

.134

5. 284

100. 017

The variety and extent of manufacture of this material in Kentucky
indicate that it will eventually form a resource of great importance,

1Geol. Surv. of Tvv., report on Jackson Purchase Region, 1888, p. 84 et seq.

2 Op. cit., pp. 102, 107.

506

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

not only in this State but in Tennessee and Mississippi. The deposit
is the most extensive of the kind in this country and probably in the
world ; and the capabilities of the material in the arts are no doubt
largely undeveloped.

GRAVEL.

About the inland margin of the formation, particularly along the
larger rivers, a gravel composed largely of quartz and quartzite on the
Atlantic slope, of chert, novaculite, etc., in the Mississippi embayment,
and of a wider variety of obdurate materials in Texas, are characteristic;
and since the localities of exceptional gravel development are usually
selected as sites for towns and cities, the material acquires special
value for road metal, railway ballast, etc. For such purposes it is in¬
comparably superior to the ordinary macadam made by breaking or
crushing quarry rocks ; for the pebbles represent the most obdurate of
rock materials, sorted out by a rigid and long continued process of
natural selection from among the various terranes traversed by the
streams, and neither dissolve into red mud like limestone nor grind
into dust like granite, but commonly maintain their integrity under the
beating of hoofs and the wear of tires for indefinite periods. The world
affords no better material for such purposes than the gravel of the
Lafayette formation.

IRON.

The Lafayette formation is nearly everywhere deeply ferruginated,
and it frequently contains nodules, plates, sheets, and pipes of sand-
ironstone, and in many localities it has yielded limonite of good quality.
Commonly the ore is insufficient in quantity to give the formation rank
with the great ferriferous deposits of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wiscon¬
sin, Missouri, and Alabama, and in many cases indeed the quantity is
sufficient only to delude the prospector and absorb capital; but the
promise of the richer accumulations is such as to render this resource
of the formation worthy of careful study.

In many localities the argillaceous layers of the lower and stratified
member of the formation are ferruginated to such a degree as to form
ochers. This is especially common about midway between the inland
margin of the deposit and the coast, where the conditions of structure
and texture of the formation are most favorable for such alteration.
Red and yellow ochers are extracted at several points in western Ken¬
tucky and Tennessee. There are several known ocher banks in Missis¬
sippi. Red ochers have been extracted at Grand Bay and elsewhere
in southeastern Mississippi and southern Alabama.

CHAPTEE Y.

THE HISTORY RECORDED IN THE FORMATION.

THE ANTECEDENT PHYSIOGRAPHY.

The Lafayette formation rests unconformably alike upon all the older
coastal plain formations. Its distribution and local volume are such as
to indicate that it was laid down mantlewise, thicker in depressions,
thinner over water partings, thickest along the greatest water ways,
thinnest over broad divides in which the shoal sea waters were not fed
by local affluents. Yet the distribution of the remnants of the forma¬
tion and the various local unconformities, viewed singly or collectively,
indicate that the surface on which the formation rests was only moder¬
ately rugose and probably no more deeply broken by water ways than
the monotonous coastal lowland of to-day. Detailed examination of
the local unconformities and the distribution of the remnants indicates,
however, that the quality of the relief was somewhat different from
that of the present; the configuration of the modern coastal plain is
largely terraciform, and the terrace plains are frequently so imperfectly
invaded by erosion as to give accented contours and profiles made up
of combinations of straight lines with V'shaPe(l depressions, while the
restored pre-Lafayette surface is not terraciform but soft contoured,
giving profiles of easy curves. jSTow, the gently undulating surface of
soft contours and easy curves is characteristic of long continued erosion
at a low altitude, or of base-level planation ; and it may accordingly be
inferred that anterior to the Lafayette period the coastal plain was
long a lowland much like that of the present. There are reasons, too,
which need not be set forth here, for supposing that the seaward slope
of the Lafayette lowland was less than that of the present coastal
plain. Moreover, the abrupt scarps along the modern displacements
extending from the Hudson to the Eappahannock, and from central
Texas to the Eio Grande did not exist, at least in their present magni¬
tude, for both displacements were initiated or renewed during a later
period. Furthermore, since the diversion of the leading water courses
of the middle Atlantic slope was also probably of later date, the pres¬
ent curiously peninsulated geographic configuration may not be sup
posed to have existed.

Thus, the pre-Lafayette configuration was so nearly like that of the
present that the map of modern physiography, forming PI. xxxii,
may be taken fairly to represent it, save (1) that the Delaware and

507

508

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Schuylkill, the Susquehanna, the Patapsco, and the Potomac embouched
directly into the ocean 5 (2) that the scarps in the middle Atlantic slope
and in western Texas were faint; (3) that the seaward slope of the
coastal plain and contiguous land was gentler; and (4) that the minor
coastal configuration of modern times did not exist.

It is to be borne in mind that the picture of a long past eon thus
formed is neither chaotic nor obscure. With the minor exceptions noted,
the Susquehanna, the Potomac, the Rappahannock, the James and the
Appomattox, the Roanoke, each principal river of the Carolinas, the
Savannah, the Ogeechee and the Oconee, the Chattahoochee, the Coosa
and the Tallapoosa, the Tuscaloosa, the Mississippi, the White, the Ar¬
kansas, the Red, the Trinity, the Brazos and the Colorado rivers are
known to have occupied their present positions, to have had about their
present declivities, to have carried about their present volumes of water,
and in other ways to have conformed to their present condition ; and
while precisely the same can not be said of the Hudson, the Delaware,
the Tennessee, the Cumberland, and especially the Rio Grande, it is
known that these rivers have been modified in certain ways, and thus
their discrepant behavior only adds to the definiteness of the picture of
past configuration conveyed by the Lafayette phenomena. So, in pre-
Lafayette times most of the streams flowed in their present channels,
drained their present basins, and fell into the sea not far from the pres¬
ent shore line, and the land was configured in detail much as at present.

THE LAFAYETTE DEPOSITION.

The record of Lafayette deposition is one of oceanic invasion, not
of catastrophic swiftness, yet of such rapidity that the waves rolled
over the sinking hills without carving shorelines, without even build¬
ing broad beaches such as the modern keys of the southern coast ; and
the inundation was not stayed until it reached inland, drowning the
southeastern margins of the continent in a zone 100 to 500 miles wide.
Before the inundation the land lay about base-level and the rivers were
idle, neither transporting pebbles nor carving canyons, nor filling their
channels with sediment; with the inundation the land warped as it
sank and tilted seaward to such a degree that while the lower reaches
of the rivers were cut off their upper reaches were stimulated to re¬
newed activity. So the storm Avaters gathered the red residuary soil
with which the surface was mantled, the rainborn rivulets washed into
the brooks and carried forward the well ground grist, and at the same
time attacked their beds and gathered boAvlders, cobbles, and pebbles;
and the entire burden was swept into the rivers to be borne down
stream in ever-increasing volume and finally cast into the sea, where
the waves and currents spread it here and there along the new-made
coast, mixing it with the materials gathered from the new-made sea
bottom. In this way only could have been accumulated the widespread
Lafayette mantle, composed chiefly of the residua of sIoav rock decom-

stgee.] DURATION OF LAFAYETTE EPOCH. 509

position and subordinate^ of material from local formations, together
with great gravel beds about the waterways.

The extent of the oceanic invasion is shown approximately in PL
xxxix, from which it appears that the Atlantic and the Gulf were united
(though it is not absolutely certain that southern Florida was sub¬
merged), and that the water flowed over the sites of New York and
Philadelphia, Washington and Richmond, Charleston and Augusta,
New Orleans and Memphis, Cairo if not St. Louis, Little Rock, Austin,
and San Antonio. Along the Gulf slope the extent of the invasion is
fairly well known ; about the Mississippi embayment the data are less
definite; in the southwest the records are still more incomplete, and
there are indications that here the seaward tilting of the land was less
decided than in the East, so that the rivers became engines of deposition
rather than degradation far toward their sources, converting channels
into estuaries and basins into lakes, and filling these with materials
brought down from the higher mountains ; yet in all parts of the area
the data are sufficiently complete to justify this presentation of Lafay¬
ette physiography.

The duration of the inundation may not be stated in definite terms,
although it is known that, expressed in geologic time units, it wras short;
for, although the agencies of degradation and deposition were stimu¬
lated by the continent movement, the mantle of Lafayette deposits is
of limited thickness. A rude, even crude, estimate of the duration of
Lafayette deposition may easily be made. Let it be assumed that the
drainage basin of the Mississippi during the invasion was a million
square miles; let it be also assumed that the stimulated degradation
proceeded at twice the commonly assigned rate of a foot in G,000 years ;
let it be assumed likewise that the material gathered by the river was
deposited in an embayment 100,000 square miles in area (the part car¬
ried farther being balanced against the material gathered by the waves
below tide level); and let it be assumed finally that the original
thickness of the deposit was 200 feet; then the area of degradation
being ten times that of deposition the sediments may be estimated to
have dropped at the rate of a foot in 300 years, and so the dropping
may be estimated to have continued for 60,000 years. The data for the
estimate are, of course, far from adequate, because of evidence in the
character of deposits that the Mississippi embayment was supplied
chiefly from the greatly stimulated Appalachian drainage on the east
rather than from the greater but relatively indolent northern river,
because the postulate of uniformity in the efficiency of geologic pro¬
cesses is not established, and for a variety of other reasons; yet even if
it be accepted with a “ factor of safety ” of 50 or 100 or 500 it may be
useful.

The increase in stream declivity attending the inundation may not
be measured with any approach to accuracy, though it may roughly be
estimated. It has been stated that during pre-Lafayette times the

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

51Q

coastal lowland was reduced to a base-level plain ; it may be added that
this base-level plain was not confined to the lowlands, but extended
over the Piedmont plateau, throughout the iutermontane valleys of the
Appalachians, and probably joined a coincident but more rugose base-
level peneplain in the Cumberland plateau. Now, actual continuity of
the base-level planation throughout the several physiographic prov¬
inces of eastern United States may be inferred from the qualitative
similarity and quantitative equivalence in the configuration (which was
produced by well known processes of degradation); it is indicated, also,
and perhaps more strongly, by the tenuity and fineness of materials
among the coastal plain deposits corresponding to this period of slug¬
gish process; and it is indicated as well by the correspondence (set
forth in some detail later) in lowland, plateaus, and mountains alike, of
the distinctive degradation and peculiar deposition inaugurated by the
Lafayette continent movement. From the concurrent records it is
found that since the seaward tilting was initiated, the Appalachian,
Piedmont, and Cumberland rivers have carved narrow gorges 100 to
400 feet deep in the old base-level plain, and are still actively deepen¬
ing their channels, for they are yet some hundreds of feet above the
level of inaction. Now, some part of this lifting no doubt postdates
the Lafayette tilting; yet on comparing the coarseness of materials
transported by the rivers during the Lafayette period and to-day, it
seems probable that the greater part of this continent warping must be
referred to the time of the inundation. If this inference be just, then
the Cumberland, Appalachian, and Piedmont regions must have risen,
relatively to the surrounding lowlands, somewhere between 100 and 2,000
feet, a fair estimate for the average uplifting of the entire tract being
800 feet. In quality the uplift was probably a gentle warping without
localized deformation, so that the amount diminished from a maximum
somewhere about the axis of the Appalachian zone to nothing toward
the Atlantic on the east, the Gulf on the south, and the embayment on
the southwest. If the general sinking and the warping of the conti¬
nent were synchronous, as seems probable, then the absolute lifting of
the Appalachian zone was much less than the relative rise ; so that if
the average sinking of this part of the continent was 400 feet, then the
average lifting of the mountains as the ocean approached their bases
was probably about the same, and the mean continental altitude was
about the same as before; yet when the inundation ended and the con¬
tinent rose once more, the Appalachian Mountains were far more con¬
spicuous elements in the geography of the continent than during the
earlier Neocene, the Eocene, and probably the Cretaceous.

Noteworthy as was the seaward tilting attending Lafayette deposi¬
tion, it was apparently confined chiefly or exclusively to the eastern
lands centering in the Appalachians. Although the formation is grav¬
elly along the northwestern affluents of the Gulf, the pebbles are so
disposed as to indicate littoral distribution of materials rather than the

SFGEE.]

UPLIFTING OF THE APPALACHIAN AXIS.

511

pronounced stimulation of streams attested by the great Mississippi and
cis-Mississippi gravel beds ; and, moreover, the embayment deposits tell
rather of accelerated work on the part of the rivers entering it from
the east than of generally increased activity among the longer and
stronger tributaries from the north and northwest. Certain phenom¬
ena, indeed, suggest that the Lafayette low level reached far northwest¬
ward, and that the Lafayette deposits are represented by the Llano
gravels of Hill, the mortar beds of Hay, and possibly the puzzling
Wyoming conglomerate of King, though here caution-burdened con¬
clusion hardly follows the flight of winged hypothesis.

Many phenomena indicate that when the Lafayette inundation ended,
the waters of Gulf and ocean retreated rapidly as they had advanced ;
for the surface of the formation reveals no sea cliffs, no well defined
shore lines, no wave built beaches, but only a few relatively narrow
terraces apparently of estuarine or semifluvial character along several
of the southeastern water ways.

THE LAFAYETTE DEGKADATION.

Before the Lafayette invasion on the part of the Atlantic and the
gulf, the five physiographic provinces of the eastern United States
were reduced to a gently undulating base-level plain, strongly relieved
only by the Appalachian Mountains ; during the invasion a third of the
land was drowned and the remaining portion was tilted seaward from
an axis coinciding with the Appalachian zone. Then follow abund¬
ant and unmistakable records that as the waters retreated the seaward
tilting persisted, while the land rose not only to, but much above, its
pre-Lafayette altitude ; and through the period during which land stood
high the five physiographic provinces, and the submarine extension of
the continent as well, were deeply and distinctively sculptured by the
lengthened and greatly strengthened streams. Over the higher prov¬
inces this sculpture persists to-day 5 over the portion of the coastal plain
buried beneath Columbia deposits the deep and broad incisions have
been filled and obliterated as land forms, though the old surface may
readily be projected from stratigraphic relations 5 and over the sub¬
merged part of the coastal plain the sculpture is not only buried but
drowned, yet may be projected in general terms within certain limits.

The eastern portion of the Mississippi basin is a gently undulating
plain, diversified chiefly by distinctly scored drainage ways; the Cum¬
berland and Piedmont plateaus are peneplains diversified most promi¬
nently by deeply incised drainage ways; the Appalachian zone is a
montanic tract characterized by distinctly positive and distinctly neg¬
ative forms, the first being ridges embossed upon and the second narrow
gorges engraved within a peneplain ; and the provinces together con¬
stitute a modern peneplain rising highest about where relieved by the
Appalachian ridges, and everywhere scored to depths averaging some
hundred feet by narrow gorges. The general peneplain stands for a

512

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

base-level epoch; the gorges for a high-level epoch. Now the fine and
slowly accumulated early Neocene, Eocene, and later Cretaceous depos¬
its of the coastal plain indicate that during the periods of their depo¬
sition the land lay low and the rivers were sluggish, and there are no
interbedded coarse deposits to indicate that this equable condition was
interrupted by decided continent movements from the beginning of
deposition of the Severn to the beginning of deposition of the Lafayette.
So, too, the configuration interpreted by means of geomorphology indi¬
cates that the land stood low and the rivers were sluggish throughout
a vast period of base-level planation terminating with the initiation of
Lafayette deposition. These independent records coincide so exactly
as to warrant correlation of the fine deposits on the one hand with the
base-level planation on the other, and this correlation gives a datum
plane from which the post-Lafayette degradation may be measured.

The degradation of the post-base-level period thus defined in the
Piedmont and Appalachian zone is represented along the Susquehanna
by a steep-sided gorge 2 miles and less in width, 100 to 350 feet in
depth; along the Potomac by a similar incision in the old peneplain
reaching a mile in width and 100 to 400 feet in depth, and along all
other waterways of the provinces by corresponding gorges of dimensions
closely proportionate to the magnitude of the streams. The post-base-
level (and also post- Lafayette) degradation in the coastal plain is repre¬
sented by the profound yet broad gorges which, albeit half filled or even
brim full of Columbia deposits, form the remarkable estuaries, savan¬
nas, and fluvial marshlands by which the coasts are indented. Among
these post-Lafayette gorges are Delaware and Chesapeake bays, the
Potomac estuary, Albemarle and Pamlico sounds, the half-drowned
savannas from which the principal river of the southern Atlantic slope
takes it name, Mobile Bay and the tide marshes through which Mobile
River meanders, and, by far the most conspicuous of all, the gorge of
the lower Mississippi, extending from Cairo to the Gulf aud from Mem¬
phis and Baton Rouge to Little Rock and Natchitoches; and each
smaller waterway has a corresponding gorge of depth and width pro¬
portionate to the volume of the stream occupying it. Now these
partially filled gorges are excavated not only in the Lafayette forma¬
tion, but entirely through that comparatively thin mantle and far into
the underlying rock masses of Neocene, Eocene, even Cretaceous age.
Along the Delaware and Chesapeake gorges the Lafayette mantle is
entirely degraded, save in isolated remnants representing but a tithe
of its original area, and the pre-Columbia gorges are carved into all of
the older coastal plain formations to widths reaching a dozen or a score
of miles and to depths unquestionably reaching several hundred feet.
The pre-Columbia Savannah River flowed in a gorge 3 to 15 miles wide
and hundreds of feet deep, cutting through every pre-Lafayette forma¬
tion of that part of the coastal plain; the Alabama and Mobile, with
the confluent Tombigbee, carved soft-contoured canyons reaching 20 miles

MrGEE.]

THE POST-LAFAYETTE HIGH-LEVEL.

513

in width and 400 feet in depth, cutting entirely through the Lafayette
and far into if not through the subjacent Neocene formations, during
the post-Lafayette degradation period; and during the same period the
Mississippi first degraded the entire thickness (albeit exceptional) of the
Lafayette formation from its present base-level tract, 500 miles long
and 100 miles wide, save in the few isolated remnants represented by
Crowley Ridge, then attacked and completely cleft the deltaform rock
mass of the Grand Gulf, and next cut far into if not entirely through
the subjacent Eocene formations, to depths below its present level,
reaching 200 feet at Memphis, 400 feet at Helena, 600 feet at Green¬
ville, and 800 or 900 feet at New Orleans (as long ago pointed out by
Hilgard). Beyond the Mississippi the indications of post-Lafayette
erosion are equally decisive, though different in quality. These pro¬
found gorges prove beyond peradventure that during the post- Lafayette
period of degradation the land along the line of the present coast stood
from at least 200 to fully 700 feet above the present level. So the con¬
figuration of the continent during this high-level period must have been
something like that represented in the map forming PL xl.

In addition to the unmistakable evidence of high-level altitude in
southeastern United States afforded by the buried and flooded gorges
of the coastal plain, there is strong presumptive evidence that it was
at the beginning of the post- Lafayette lifting that the fall-line displace¬
ment of the middle Atlantic slope and probably that of southeastern
Texas were initiated; and also that it was at this juncture that the
main waterways of the middle Atlantic slope were diverted in such
manner as to peninsulate the northern districts of the coastal plain.
There is strong presumptive evidence also that the warping of the east¬
ern land, by which the Appalachian axis was lifted more than the sea¬
ward margin, persisted during the high-level period and indeed persists
to-day; and there are similar indications that during the same high-
level period the trans-Mississippi land was not only lifted less than the
cis-Mississippi area, but was tilted seaward in such manner that the
rivers worked more energetically and more widely in their upper reaches
than toward their mouths, and thus degraded the Lafayette deposits
toward their inland margin rather than toward the Gulf. These lines
of evidence need not now be pursued.

It is significant that while the magnitude of post- Lafayette gorges is
proportionate to the volumes of the streams by which they were exca¬
vated and are still occupied, the depth is variable. Now, in the dearth
of borings the depths are seldom known with precision; but in general
they may be inferred from scattered borings, from the width of the
gorges and the slopes of their walls, from the degree of local degrada¬
tion of the Lafayette deposits, and from other indirect data, with some
approach to accuracy. Measured thus it is found that the sinking was
unequal. In the northern district of the coastal plain, including the
Maryland and New Jersey peninsulas, it reached fully 500 feet, and the
12 geol - 33

514

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

Lafayette mantle was reduced to trifling remnants ; it diminished south¬
ward to the Cape Hatteras axis, where the lifting was probably only
200 or 300 feet, so that the gorges are narrow and shallow and the La¬
fayette mantle nearly intact; still farther southward it again increased
to several hundred feet, culminating at nearly 1,000 feet about the
mouth of the Mississippi ; and in the southwest it again diminished to
such an extent that the pre-Columbia gorges are inconspicuous and the
Lafayette mantle nearly continuous beneath the later deposit along the
line of the coast. So, in addition to the general bulging beneath the
Appalachian zone, the land warped as it lifted and in irregular fashion ;
and there is a curious correspondence between the irregular warping of
the continent during the post-Lafayette high-level period and that char¬
acterizing the Lafayette low-level period — in general where the land
sank lowest during the period of deposition, there it rose highest during
the period of degradation. This correspondence extends also to the
later continent movements recorded in the Columbia formation and its
less conspicuous degradation.

THE BURIAL OF TH^ LAFAYETTE.

South of the Raritan and of the Delaware at Trenton, and of some line
in the Mississippi embayment not yet accurately traced, the youugest
formation of the coastal plain is the Columbia. In general it is a con¬
tinuous mantle, rising and stretching inland from tide to heights rang¬
ing from 100 to 600 or 700 feet and to distances running from a score to
many hundred miles. Throughout the greater portion of this area it is
an open-water deposit, and its presence gives a minimum measure of
continent submergence; throughout a lesser portion of its extent it is
an estuarine or semifluvial deposit, and its presence gives a ruder
measure of submergence and of continent tilting along lines orthogonal
to the coast; and in still smaller part it is a littoral deposit, and gives a
maximum measure of submergence and of continent warping along the
coast line. Unlike the Lafayette, this formation has been but slightly
degraded, probably 90 per cent of its volume yet remaining where
originally laid. Accordingly the extent of the Columbia invasion of
oceanic waters, both vertical and horizontal, may be ascertained with a
high degree of accuracy; and thus it is known that the geography of
the period was about that represented graphically in PI. xli.

Apropos to the evidence of submergence afforded by the Columbia
period, there is an equally decisive line of evidence of a post-Columbia
high-level period during which the land was lifted to such height above
its present altitude that the Hudson, the Delaware, the Susquehanna,
and the Potomac, and probably other Atlantic slope rivers, as well as
the Mississippi and probably other affluents of the Gulf, corraded chan¬
nels at depths reaching some scores of feet below present tide along
the coast and some hundreds of feet off shore. During this high-level

STOKE.}

THE POST-COLUMBIA HIGH-LEVEL.

515

period a part of the Columbia Ailing of the great post-Lafayette gorges
was removed. This high-level was quickly followed by sinking of the
land which has perhaps, even probably, continued without serious in¬
terruption to the present days of slow oceanic invasion and reef building
along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.1

THE RELATIONS OF THE CONTINENT MOVEMENTS.

On comparing quantitatively the two inundations and their attendant
desiccations, it appears that the earlier was in all respects the more
important. In the Arst place, the earlier invasion of the waters rose
higher by 150 or 200 feet on the average, and extended proportionately
farther inland; in the second place, the earlier inundation was the
longer, since a much greater volume of deposits was accumulated;
again, the land stood higher during the post-Lafayette high-level than
during that following the Columbia deposition, and the earlier gorges
are the deeper; and Anally, the earlier period of high-level was by far
the longer, since the degradation of the Lafayette is many times as
great as that of the Columbia.

On comparing quantitatively the irregular continent movements of
the two periods, certain signiAcant resemblances and certain signiAcant
differences appear. Thus, during the Columbia submergence as during
that of the Lafayette period, the land warped as it sank and in similar
fashion; the sinking was considerable over the northeastern portion of
the coastal plain; it diminished southward to the Hatteras axis and
again culminated along a line connecting Savannah River with the great
bend of the Tennessee at the northeastern corner of Mississippi and
probably continuing westward; it then diminished southward nearly
to tide level along the central Gulf coast on both sides of the Missis¬
sippi ; and in the southwestern stretch of the coastal plain it gradually
increased both inland and toward the lower Rio Grande. So, too, dur¬
ing the post-Columbia high-level epoch the lifting reached several hun¬
dred feet in the northeastern district of the coastal plain, as attested by
the drowned channels of the Hudson, the Delaware, the Susquehanna,
and the Potomac, and by the general stream invasion of the Columbia
terraces ; over the Hatteras axis it was materially less, as indicated by
the low relief and the integrity of the broad terrace plains of Colum¬
bia deposits which are little invaded by modern erosion; still farther
southward the lifting again increased to such an extent that the u sec¬
ond bottom ” deposits of the Georgia, Alabama, and eastern Mississippi
rivers are trenched to their foundations and to half of their width, and
that much of the Columbia mantle of northern Mississippi and western
Tennessee was swept away by the accelerated action of the streams ;
while toward the coast the record* of post-Columbia high-level gener¬
ally diminish in magnitude of measure despite the conspicuous testi-

1 Recent observations, chiefly by Chamberlin and Salisbury, suggest that the later Pleistocene osciL
lations extended well toward the Gulf in the Mississippi embayment.

516

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

mony of the submerged prolongation of the Mississippi. Thus, in gen¬
eral terms, the land warping was alike in the two inundations; also the
land warping was alike in the two desiccations; and most remarkable
of all the warping of each downthrow and its attendant uplift were
roughly reciprocal, the local departures from the mean continent atti¬
tude, both upward and downward, approximating equality.

Of the two most noteworthy differences between the Columbia move¬
ments and the Lafayette movements, one is especially significant in
that its effect on continent configuration is apparently magnified in a
fortuitous way: During the Columbia inundation the interior portion
of the coastal plain in the eastern Gulf slope was not submerged, and
indeed the expanded ocean barely flooded the coastal portion ; yet, as
attested by the 11 second bottom v deposits, this tract must have been
tilted landward to such an extent that the rivers were converted into
long estuaries with ill drained lowlands between, something like the
district of the present coastal plain lying between the Potomac and the
Neuse, save that the estuaries were longer. Accordingly, the land lay
so flat that had the submergence been a few score feet more the waves
would have rolled inland as many scores of miles, and might easily
have washed the Piedmont margin and the southwestern extremities of
the western plateau and the mountains. Now, during the Lafayette
inundation the waters were everywhere deeper than that of the Colum¬
bia, the average difference being 100 or 200 feet; and so if the land
warping during the earlier period corresponded exactly to that of the
later, it might nevertheless carry the entire u second bottom ” region
below the oceanic waters. Accordingly, the diversity in configuration
shown in the maps of the physiography during the Columbia and
Lafayette periods is not indicative of inequality in warping during
the two inundations. Moreover, there is some evidence in the char¬
acter of the deposits over the u second bottom ” territory that the land
tilted northward during the Lafayette period just as it did during the
Columbia flooding; for here the coarseness and heterogeneity of mate¬
rials extend farther seaward than elsewhere in the coastal plain,
indicating a broader stretch of ocean water, a wider tract of slight and
uniform submergence.

A second difference is especially noteworthy in that it serves to con¬
nect the coastal plain with other provinces. In the cis-Mississippi
lands there are records of long-continued base-level planation followed
by a seaward tilting probably coeval with the initiation of Lafayette
deposition but persisting to the present, and of two similar and sub¬
equal inundations followed by similar and subequal desiccations; while
in the trans-Mississippi land the records are less closely concordant.
Thus the phenomena seem to indicate Gulfward tilting after rather than
before the Lafayette inundation ; and here, too, the Columbia inunda¬
tion fell unusually far short of that of the Lafayette. Again, the records

MfGEE.]

PLEISTOCENE ORIGIN OF THE RIO GRANDE.

517

show that there was a landward tilting in the southwestern district,
culminating during the Columbia low-level period just as it did in the
u second bottom” district of the eastern Gulf slope, and that this con¬
tinent movement was subsequently reversed so as to stimulate the
rivers until they were able to trench their u second bottoms,” yet not to
clear the post-Lafayette gorges nor even deeply to indent the coast
line when the waters began to return upon the land in modern times.
Probably connected with this aberrant movement in the southwestern
district of the province is the aberrant physiography of the western
Gulf coast. In general the shore line of the Gulf is a sweeping curve,
interrupted by deltaform projections at the mouths of some rivers, by
reentrants at the mouths of others; and in general terms it may be said
that the prominence of the projections is proportionate to the magni¬
tude of the rivers, and that the depth of the reentrants is proportionate
to the propinquity to the mouth of the great river of the continent. Yet
the projection at the mouth of the Rio Grande, the second in magnitude
of the Gulf affluents, is shorter than that of the Appalachicola, and
little, if any, greater than that about the mouths of the relatively small
Brazos and Colorado rivers. Now, a hypothetical explanation of the
aberrant behavior of the land during the Columbia period and at the
same time of the inactivity of the Rio Grande in delta building may be
suggested : The Columbia inundation was coeval with the first great
ice invasion of the Pleistocene, as repeatedly pointed out, and as
recently demonstrated by Salisbury from the phenomena of northern
New Jersey; and during this episode the climate of considerable por¬
tions of the United States was materially modified. There is little indi¬
cation that the climatal modification extended even so far southward
as the latitude of Cape Hatteras in the cis-Mississippi land, and little
evidence that the ice-born floods materially affected the general climate
of the Lower Mississippi region — the increased water surface probably
counterbalanced the chill of the ice floes, which seem to have carried
material nearly or quite to the thirty-first parallel ; but in the sub humid
and arid regions of the southwest the climatal change seems to have
been greater. The increased precipitation resulting from the expanded
water surface is notably impressed upon the configuration of the inner
zone of the coastal plain as already indicated (page 406), and still fur¬
ther inland there are coincident records. Thus, the drainage area of
the upper Rio Grande, above the confluence of the Pecos, is a series of
basins lined with lacustral or torrential deposits simulating those of the
Bonneville and Lahontan basins and other landlocked lowlands of the
Great Basin ; in the northern portion of the drainage area the lacustral
deposits have been called the Santa Fe marls by Stevenson and referred
to the Pliocene on paleontologic grounds, just as have been the Bonne¬
ville and Lahontan and other analogous deposits on similar grounds.
Farther southward the deposits have been examined and correlated

518

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

with those of Santa Ft* by Hill ; and about El Paso, where the Rio
Grande enters the purlieu of the coastal plain province, the deposits
are found to be of Pleistocene aspect, and their erosion forms have been
found to correspond, cseteris paribus, with those produced by post-
Columbia work in other localities. Now, just above the mouth of the
Pecos the Rio Grande traverses a narrow and evidently new gorge,
manifestly excavated after the basin deposits were laid down ; and it
may be inferred that the overflow began about the culmination of the
early Pleistocene humid period, during which the various landlocked
basins of the arid region were filled, some to overflowing; and it may
further be inferred that the weighting of the western land beneath
snow sheets and glaciers in the higher altitudes and beneath immense
lakes in the lower, destroyed the equilibrium so delicately adjusted in
the eastern land and led to the inland tilting of the Columbia period.
This far-reaching correlation is consistent with a wide range of phe¬
nomena, and, indeed, derives its chief strength from that fact, yet it
does not aid in explaining the aberrant continent movements of the
Lafayette time.

On comparing chronologic ally the t wo records of continent movement
found respectively in the Lafayette phenomena and Columbia phenom¬
ena, certain fairly definite results useful in interpreting the history of
the continent are reached. In the first place, the unconformable super¬
position of the Columbia upon the Lafayette indicates that the superior
and little degraded formation is much newer than the inferior and deeply
degraded one. Then, comparing quantitatively the respective amounts
of the degradation accomplished during the two high-level periods, a
rough quantitative idea may be formed of the relative antiquity of the
periods. Let it be understood that the post-Columbia erosion is measured
in the soft deposits by the modern estuaries and submerged channels,
such as those of the Hudson, Delaware, Susquehanna, and Potomac, and
in the hard rocks by such gorges as that of the Susquehanna below Peach
Bottom, and that of the Potomac below Great Falls (the latter and
more definite being 15 miles long, half a mile in average width, and
40 to 145 feet in depth) ; and let it be realized that the post-Lafayette
erosion is measured in the soft deposits by the immense ancient gorges
of the Atlantic rivers, reaching dozens or scores of miles wide and hun¬
dreds of feet deep, and by the far grander gorge of the Mississippi,
reaching 100,000 miles in area and 1,000 feet in depth, and in the hard
rocks by the steep-sided gorges in which every principal Cumberland,
Appalachian, and Piedmont stream flows, in length averaging hundreds
of miles, in width averaging half a mile, and in depths averaging 200 or
250 feet; and it will become evident that the erosion of the earlier high-
level may not be estimated at less than five hundred times, and that
it may exceed five thousand times that of the later period of similar
continental attitude.

MrGEE.]

SHORTNESS OF THE POST-LAFAYETTE HIGH-LEVEL.

519

The interpretation of the erosion records may then be carried a stage
further: On examining the quality of the configuration impressed upon
the land by the post-Lafayette degradation (and again by the post-Colum¬
bia degradation), it appears that the chief land forms are flat peneplains
partially invaded and divided by narrow, deep, steep-sided gorges, i. e.,
the configuration indicates that the base-level peneplain of pre-Lafa¬
yette times, stretching through the Cumberland, Appalachian, and Pied¬
mont regions, has been modified only as to water-lines and not as to in¬
teriors by the post- Lafayette erosion. Now, the chief factors in the
general processes of hydrodynamic degradation are declivity and time ;
and these factors are so related to the subordinate factors residing in
rock constitution, etc., that the rate of degradation may be inferred
from the quality of the land forms produced thereby. Thus, if the
declivity be high for a short period degradation will be concentrated
along the water lines, and deep channels and canyons will be excavated,
and high and steep hills will be left between; while, if the declivity be
low and the period long, the degradation of a like amount of material
will result in broad shallow valleys, bounded by low hills of gentle
slope; and, similarly, other modifications in these and other factors of
degradation leave definite records of their relative and absolute effi¬
ciency, which may be readily interpreted through the aid of geomor¬
phology. Now, the record of the post- Lafayette degradation of the pre-
Lafayette peneplain is one of high altitude for a relatively brief period;
and the post-Columbia record, though shorter and less clearly legible,
is of like tenor. It is a corollary from this conclusion that the relative
erosion measure of the two high-level periods, namely, 500 : 1, or 5000 : 1,
is deceptive, since the land was far higher, the declivity far greater,
and the degradation consequently far more rapid during the earlier
degradation period. Yet, despite this correction, the earlier degrada¬
tion period must have been by far the longer.

The relative duration of the periods of deposition and degradation,
respectively, has not been ascertained in chronometric terms either of
history or geology ; though the records indicate in a general way that
each degradation period was far longer than the preceding deposition
period. This is tangibly true of the Lafayette in- particular ; for half
the material of the formation was degraded from large areas in which
the streams represent local precipitation, while the same materials
represent the products of degradation from a many times larger area.
The measure is, however, so indefinite that it may only be said that the
deposition periods were relatively short, the degradation periods rela¬
tively long.

Before the initiation of Lafayette deposition there was a long period
of continental quiescence, followed by strong and relatively rapid os¬
cillation below and above the mean position ; and there was a similar
oscillation attending the Columbia deposition and degradation. Now, it

THE LAFAYETTE FORMATION.

is desirable to ascertain the rela¬
tive duration of the periods of
oscillation and the intervals of
quiescence; but the records upon
this point are unfortunately in¬
complete or incompletely inter¬
preted — the degradation record of
the post- Lafayette and pre-Colum¬
bia interval is vague or equivocal
in that the essential factors of de¬
clivity and time can not be sever¬
ally evaluated. There remains,
however, the useful though thus
far only qualitative measure found
in lithifaction, decomposition, fer-
rug'ination, etc. Estimated by
means of this measure it may be
said, first, that the early Pleisto¬
cene Columbia deposits are many
times older than the later Pleisto¬
cene deposits associated with the
terminal moraine ; and second, that
the Lafayette deposits are many
times older than those of the Co¬
lumbia. In the case of the Colum¬
bia this estimate is corroborated
by collateral data; for the physiog¬
raphy and hydrography of the un¬
submerged portions of the coastal
plain in the middle Atlantic slope
indicate that the post-Columbia
high-level ended so long ago that
great submarine banks have been
built across the post-Columbia
submarine channels. This is par¬
ticularly true of the Delaware
channel; not only has the great
bank of Cape May stretched half
way across Delaware bay since the
land subsided, but its much greater
submarine extension has pushed
nearly or quite across the entire
width of the bay and fairly cut off
the submarine channel. These
phenomena give an expression of
the relation between the oscilla-

M'GEE.] EPITOME OF CONTINENTAL MOVEMENTS. 521

tion periods and intervals of quiescence, which may be extended by
analogy to the Lafayette period.

Summarizing the various quantitative and qualitative records con¬
cerning the relative antiquity and magnitude of the oscillations, con¬
cerning the absolute and relative departures of the continent from mean
position, and concerning the chronologic relations of the episodes
comprised in and the intervals falling between the periods of special
activity in continent movement, a conception is formed which may
best be represented graphically as in Fig. 71, in which the horizontal
element represents time and the vertical element attitude with respect
to present sea level. The time units, be it observed, are not at all re¬
ducible to the units of historical chronology, and only uncertainly reduci¬
ble to the far greater units of geochrony. The relation of the arbitrary
time units of this diagram are roughly reduced to geochronic units ; or,
in other words, the time relations of the Columbia and Lafayette periods
to the Cenozoic aud later Mesozoic eons are expressed in the diagram
forming Fig. 72. In this diagram, too, the horizontal element of the
curve represents time and the vertical horizontal element continent
movement, and the time units are so far reduced as greatly to condense
the curve.

THE NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT DERING CAMRRIAN TIME.

By CHARLES D. WALCOTT.

523

■

CONTENTS.

Page.

Introductor/’observations . 529

Deposition of sediments . 532

Character and extent of the sediments . 335

Pre-Cambrian land . 540

Atlantic coast province . 541

Appalachian province . 542

Rocky Mountain province . 543

Interior continental province . 543

Rdsume . 543

Geographic distribution . 545

Surface of the pre-Cambrian land . 546

Atlantic coast province . 546

Appalachian province . 548

Rocky Mountain province . 551

Interior continental province . 554

Continental features . 557

Dana . 557

Chamberlin . 561

Walcott . 562

Middle Cambrian land . 563

Post-Cambrian land . 565

Conclusions . 567

525

ILLUSTRATIONS.

Page.

PI. XLII. Map to illustrate the relative amount of sedimentation within the
typical geological provinces of North America during Cam¬
brian time . 532

XLIII. Hypothetical map of the North American Continent at the beginning

of Cambrian time . 546

XLIV. 1. Vertical section across northern central Wisconsin during the
deposition of the Upper Cambrian (Potsdam) sandstone. (After
Chamberlin, Geology of Wisconsin, vol. 1, 1883, PI. 5, section) . . 556

2. Section displayed to view on the east side of the gorge at the
upper narrows of the Baraboo River, showing the unconformity
between the Potsdam sandstone and the subjacent Huronian
quartzite. (After Irving, Seventh Ann. Rep. U. S. Geological

Survey, p. 407, Fig. 80.) . 556

8. Section on Black River in the vicinity of Black River Falls, Wis.,
showing the Potsdam sandstone resting on an eroded surface
composed of granite and steeply inclined layers of gneiss and
ferruginous schists. Scale 2 miles to the inch. (After Irving,

Seventh Ann. Rep., U. S. Geological Survey, p. 403, Fig. 75.) . 556

4. Section from southeast to northwest in the St. Croix River region
of northwestern Wisconsin, through the Keweenaw series and
Potsdam sandstone. (After Irving, Seventh Ann. Rep. U. S. Geo¬
logical Survey, p. 413, Fig. 88. ) . 556

XLV. Hypothetical map of the North American continent at the beginning

of Lower Silurian (Ordovician) time . 566

Fig. 73 a, i, c, d, e. Diagrammatic sections to illustrate the deposition of sedi¬
ments on a seashore that is being gradually depressed in rela¬
tion to sea level, and a section of sediments so deposited when
elevated as part of a mountain range . 530

74. Section from St. Johns, Newfoundland, to Great Bell Island, Con¬

ception Bay, by Portugal Cove . 547

75. Section on Manuels Brook, Conception Bay, Newfoundland . 548

76. Section from Rigaud, Canada, to Chateaugay Four Corners, Franklin

County, New York . . 549

77. Section showing Paleozoic sediments and configuration of Archean

bottom of ocean in Wyoming, Utah, and Nevada . 552

78. Grand Canyon section, Arizona . . 553

527

THE NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

By Charles D. Walcott.

INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS.

It is exceedingly difficult to restore the topography of the continent
at any comparatively recent geologic period. It is doubly so for the far
distant Cambrian time. The unknown so far exceeds the known that
the presentation is necessarily more or less incomplete, suggestive
rather than decisive, and the imagination must be called in to aid in
drawing a picture of the Cambrian land, if such is desired. There were
rivers, lakes, and seas, much like those at present, and there must have
been plains, hills, mountains, and valleys, but we do not find traces of
land life, either animal nor vegetable, although there may have been
bogs and morasses filled with mosses. For the geologist, however,
there are data outlining, in a broad way, the form of the continent at
the beginning, during, and at the close of the period under consideration.

The beginning of the period is one of the most marked geologic epochs
in the history of the evolution of the continent. At the close of the
period the central portions of the pre-Cambrian continent were covered
by the ocean, as were more or less of the ridges on the east and west
that formed the outlying barrier lands between the great oceans and
the inland seas during the earlier epoch.

The data for the construction of the maps are obtained by assembling
the evidence afforded by the traces that have been preserved of the
physical phenomena and the animal life of the period. We have to con¬
sider, (a) the absence or presence of rocks of Cambrian age in contact
with the earlier subjacent rocks; (b) the physical character of the Cam¬
brian sediments and their prob able source; (c) the question whether the
sediments were littoral or pelagic deposits; (d) the presence of similar
forms of organic remains at the same relative stratigraphic horizon; (e)
the similarity of the order of succession of the subfaunas of the Cam¬
brian fauna where they are present.

Before proceeding to describe the sections of strata as they now occur,
I wish first to call attention to what actually takes place at the present
12 geol - 31 529

530

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

(lay when the sea is transgressing upon the land, wearing it away and
depositing the sediments derived from the immediate shore and that
received from the tributary rivers and streams.

It is well known that the coarse sediment will be found near the shore
and that a gradation from the coarser to the liner will take place as we
proceed outward from the shore line to deeper water, and a limit will
finally be reached beyond which the mechanical sediments will not pass
except in the form of the finest silt or mud that can be carried by
oceanic currents.

Fig. 73 «, b, c d, e. — Diagrammatic sections to illustrate the deposition of sediments on a seashore that
is being gradually depressed in relation to sea level, and a section of sediments so deposited when
elevated as part of a mountain range.

The accompanying diagrammatic sections illustrate this action of the
sea and the resulting deposits of sediment where the land is gradually
sinking in relation to sea level.

In Fig. 13a the sea front is attacking the land area (A) at b and
depositing the sediment in adjoining waters; in Fig. 7 3b the coast line
has advanced to the position shown at B and a portion of A has been
reduced nearer to the sea level by surface erosion and also from the
advancing of the sea by the gradual depression of the land; in Fig. 73c
this is carried still further, and in Fig. 13d the entire land area has

WALCOTT. ]

INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS.

531

passed beneath the sea. The deposition of the inechanieal sediments
has now ceased, as there is no longer a source of supply. The soluble
minerals that have been carried in solution into the ocean have been
and are now being removed and segregated by the animal and vegeta¬
ble life and deposited upon the undisturbed ocean bed. The result of
all this is that the sediment accumulated in the immediate vicinity of
the advancing sea front is the coarse beach deposit of pebbles and
sand which, when consolidated, forms the conglomerates and sand¬
stones; farther from the shore the finer sand and mud occur which,
when hardened to rock, form the arenaceous and argillaceous shales;
superior to the latter conies the calcareous mud which now forms the
limestone. It is to be distinctly noted that several types of sediment
may be accumulating at the same time and thus be synchronous and
imbed the same species of plants and animals. It is not to be under,
stood that all the sediments were derived from the shore line by the
action of the waves. Vast quantities of silt, sand, and pebbles were
carried into the sea by streams and rivers, and along a steep shore
line the river sands and gravels, when distributed by the waves and
tidal currents over the bottom of the sea, largely formed the deposits
now classed as sandstones and conglomerates. The actual shore
erosion was undoubtedly large, but it alone can not account for the
presence of alternations of sandstone, conglomerate, shale, and lime¬
stone. It is only by the distribution of irregular supplies of sediment
from large and different drainage areas that the sedimentation of the
Appalachian trough can be explained. Owing to varying conditions
there are wide departures in detail from the typical mode of sedimen¬
tation; they are usually the exceptions and do not readily mislead the
geologist when he is searching for an ancient shore line.

Xow, if the central mass (A) of Fig. 73«, b, c, d, is elevated so as to
bring it into the same position that the pre-Paleozoie rocks of the
Green Mountains of Vermont occupy in relation to the sandstones,
shales, and limestones westward of them, we have the result shown by
Fig. 73e, in which the coarse mechanical sediments (1) rest upon the
older unconformable mass (A), and then, in turn, upon them occur the
shales (2), and, still above, the limestones (3).

Assuming the preceding interpretation of the mode of sedimenta¬
tion to be correct, the geologist in the field infers that he is approach,
ing the shoreline when he finds the sediment changing from limestone
to fine shales, and sandstones to coarser sandstones, and finally to
conglomerate. This is considered proof that the land area from which
the sediments were derived was not far distant. It is rendered doubly
certain by the presence of ripple marks and trails and tracks of ani¬
mals that were made in the zone between high and low tide.

This form of deductive reasoning is illustrated by the use made of it
in interpreting the section occurring in the trough between the Adi-
rondacks and the Green Mountains. Both on the eastern and western

532

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

sides of this a quartzite is found, resting upon the ancient crystalline
rocks, that contains bowlders and fragments derived from them. In
some localities the next superjacent rock is a shale resting upon the
quartzite, and in others it is a calcareous sandstone that passes into a
limestone. The presence or absence of the shale in the section de¬
pends largely upon the local conditions of sedimentation and the
former existence or not of tidal or shore currents that removed the
finer sediments into deep quiet waters, or into some bay or indentation
of the coast line. It quite frequently occurs that the finer sandstone
passes above directly into a calcareous sandstone and then into lime¬
stone, owing to the absence of the shales. This is the case where the
sandstone on the Adirondack side, and in some localities on the Green
Mountain side, passes above into calcareous shales and sandstones and
thence to limestones.

Having thus set forth a method by which the shore lines of the ancient
pre-Cambrian land areas may be approximately determined, the descrip¬
tion and discussion is arranged under the following heads:

(a) Deposition of sediments now forming the Cambrian group of rocks
and their relation to pre-Cambrian and post-Cambrian formations.

(b) Pre-Cambrian land.

(d) Post-Cambrian land.

(e) Conclusions.

DEPOSITION OF SEDIMENTS.

The sequential form of presentation of the data would be to consider
the evidence of the existence and character of the pre-Cambrian land
and seas before describing the sediments deposited in those seas and
on and against the land. From the fact that the proof of the existence
of the land and seas results from the study of the sediments and their
relations to the pre-Cambrian rocks, this natural order is omitted. To
obtain a graphic presentation of the existing data relating to the sedi¬
ments, typical sections of each geologic area or province have been re¬
stored by a uniform scale to a columnar form, and placed with their
base at the typical locality of each respectively, as it is impossible to
represent all the sections on the map as they occur in nature. This
illustrates the amount of sedimentation and the nature of the base
upon which it rests when the latter is known. This, in connection with
the geographic distribution of the outcrops and the outlines of the
geologic provinces, is shown on the map. (PI. xlii.)

DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XLII.

Map of the central belt of the North American Continent, to illustrate
the relative thickness of the strata composing the Cambrian group in
the various geologic provinces. (The small ring with the dot in the
center indicates the geographic location of the section.)

LiBRARV

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT. PL. XLII.

Ac. MAP

ai. To Illustrate

the relative amount of sedimentation
within the typical geologic provinces of

NORTH AMERICA

during Cambrian time
by

C.D. WALCOTT.

Scale of Map.

100 200 300 STATUE MILES

LOWER

CAMBRIAN

MIDDLE

CAMBRIAN

UPPER

CAMBRIAN

2400 3800 4800

Vertical Scale of Sections.

7200

dft.

A. Atlantic Coast Province.

B. Appalachian „

C . Rocky Mountain

D . Interior Continental Provinces.
D! Central Interior.

D? Eastern „

D? Western

D* Southwestern Interior.

Sea Level.

Adirondacks. Green Mts

_ Upper Cambrian .

Middle „

~ L ower ,,

G60. S. HARRIS 8c SONS.UTH PH HA

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

WALCOTT. ]

DEPOSITION OF SEDIMENTS.

.533

Tlie sections are grouped in the following geologic provinces :

Atlantic coast province.

Appalachian province.

Rocky Mountain province.

Interior continental province.

The latter consists of the central interior or Upper Mississippi, the
western or Rocky Mountain, the southwestern or Arizona and Texas,
and the eastern or Adirondack subprovinces.

ATLANTIC COAST PROVINCE.

The detailed descriptions of the various sections on PI. xlii are given
in Bulletin No. 81, U. S. Geological Survey, 1891, pp. 253-359.

Section 1 : Conception Bay , Avalon Peninsula , Newfoundland. — The
Cambrian rocks of the Avalon Peninsula rest unconformably upon the
strata of Archean and Algonkian age, as represented in the section.
The section illustrated is formed by the union of portions of those of
Manuels Brook, Kelleys, Great Bell, and Little Bell islands.

Section 2: Vicinity of St. John , New Brunswick. — This section is
unconformably superjacent to the Archean and unites the sections at
the city of St. John and that of Handford Brook.

Section 3: Vicinity of North Attleboro and Braintree, Massachu¬
setts. — In this section the Lower Cambrian series of North Attleboro and
the Middle Cambrian of Braintree are united in one generalized section.
The basal series is unconformably superjacent to the Archean.

APPALACHIAN PROVINCE.

Section 4: North side of the Straits of Belle Isle , Labrador. — If ever
deposited, the upper portion of the section is not now preserved ; the
base rests unconformably upon the Archean.

Section 5 : Central western Newfoundland. — The base rests upon the
Archean, but the summit of the section is not clearly defined, owing to
lack ot data to determine the range of the fauna.

Section 6: Franklin County , Vermont. — This represents the Red
Sandrock series with its superjacent Georgia shales in the township of
Georgia. The base is cut off by a fault line, and the exact limitation at
the summit is unknown.

Section 7. — This represents the great shale and slate section of Wash¬
ington County, New York. It is cut off at the base by a fault line and
the summit is not well defined.

Section 8. — The shore line deposits of the Green Mountains or the
•‘granular quartz,” above which comes limestone, in which Cambrian
fossils have been found. At the base it rests unconformably upon the
crystalline pre-Cambrian rocks.

Section 9. — Typical section in southern Pennsylvania, showing the
u granular quartz” resting unconformably upon the subjacent crystalline
rocks and extending above into the shale series beneath the limestone.

534

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

Section 10. — This section is that of central Virginia, not far away
from the shore line. The base rests unconformably upon the pre-
Cambrian rocks and above it passes into the base of the “valley” lime¬
stones. In September, 1891, I discovered the Olenellus fauna at the
summit of the Balcony Falls section, and the Upper (?) Cambrian in the
shales east of Natural Bridge. These discoveries remove one of the
interrogation marks from the column on the map.

Section 11 : Rogersville , East Tennessee. — The base of this section is
cut off by a fault line, and above it passes into the Knox dolomite, the
lower beds of which carry the Upper ( ? ) Cambrian fauna. The Cliilhowee
Mountain section comes beneath the Rogersville, and it is so represented
in this section, an interrogation point marking the hiatus between the
two sections. The data for this section are given by Mr. Bailey Willis,
chief of the Appalachian division of geology, U. S. Geological Survey.
In September, 1891, I discovered the central portion of the Middle
Cambrian fauna near the base of the Rogersville section, in the basal
sandstone of the section. This replaces the interrogation mark on
Section 11 by M. C.

Section 12. — The line of this section extends through Georgia west¬
ward into Alabama. At the base it is cut off by a fault, and above is
delimited by the Knox dolomite. The data for it is given by Mr. Wil¬
lard Hayes, of the Appalachian division of the U. S. Geological Survey.
From observations made in 1891 this section includes the Middle Cam¬
brian zone.

Section 13 : Western slope of the Wasatch Mountains , Utah. — In this
section the 12,000 feet of quartzite and siliceous slates are tentatively
referred to the Cambrian. The fossiliferous zone is confined to the upper
250 feet.

Section 14: Central eastern Nevada. — This represents the great
quartzite series beneath the fossiliferous Cambrian limestone. The base
is concealed and tbe summit has been removed by erosion.

Section 15 : Eureka district , Nevada. — In this section the fossiliferous
lower Cambrian strata rest conformably upon the quartzites, which
pass down some 1,500 feet before being concealed. The quartzite may
correspond to the upper beds of section 14. The summit of the section
passes into the superjacent Pogonip limestone of the Silurian (Ordo¬
vician).

Section 16: Gallatin River , near Gallatin City , Montana. — This is
essentially the same as the Mount Stephen section of British Columbia
(Sec. 17). The subjacent series of quartzite and siliceous slates are ten¬
tatively included in the Cambrian. (After Dr. A. C. Peale.)

Section 17 : Mount Stephen section of British Columbia in connection
with the subjacent Bow River quartzite and siliceous slates. — The relations
of the section are the same as those of the Eureka section of central
Nevada, with the addition of the Bow River quartzite and slates.

WALCOTT.')

DEPOSITION OF SEDIMENTS.

535

CENTRAL INTERIOR CONTINENTAL SUBPROVINCE.

Section IS. — The western section of the central Interior Continental
province as it occurs in Minnesota.

Section 10. — Section of the Upper Cambrian sandstones of eastern
Wisconsin.

Section 20. — Section of southern central Wisconsin, showing the
unconformity between the Cambrian and the subjacent Algonkian and
Archean rocks. Sections 18, 19, and 20 are all of Upper Cambrian age
except their base, and pass conformably above into the superjacent
Lower Silurian (Ordovician) or Magnesian limestones.

Section 21 : Ozark Mountain , southeastern Missouri. — The relations of
the Cambrian and the Archean are the same as those in the Black Hills
section. (Sec. 23.)

EASTERN OR ADIRONDACK SUBPROVINCE.

Section 22: Eastern and northern slopes of the Adirondack Moun¬
tains, , New York. — In this section the Potsdam sandstone of the Upper
Cambrian rests uuconformably upon and against the Archean and the
Algonkian rocks.

WESTERN INTERIOR CONTINENTAL, OR ROCKY MOUNTAIN SUBPROVINCE.

Section 23 : Black Hills , Dakota. — The Upper Cambrian rests uncon*
formably upon the Archean.

Section 24 : Eastern section of the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming. —
It is essentially the same as that of the Black Hills. (Sec. 23.)

Section 25. — This section of southern Montana is very much like
that of Wyoming and of the Black Hills.

Section 26 : Central Colorado. — A section representing the sandstones
that lie between the subjacent unconformable Archean or Algonkian
and the superjacent Lower Silurian (Ordovician).

SOUTHWESTERN INTERIOR CONTINENTAL SUBPROVINCE.

Section 27 : Grand Canyon of the Colorado , northern A rizona. — In this
section the Cambrian strata are uuconformably superjacent to the strata
of the Algonkian.

Section 28 : Llano County , Texas. — This section is similar to that of
the Grand Canyon in having an unconformity between the Algonkian
and the Cambrian, and in representing nearly the same geologic horizon.

CHARACTER AND EXTENT OF THE SEDIMENTS.

The sediments of the northeastern Atlantic coast province are almost
entirely shales with a small proportion of sandstone and a little lime¬
stone. Tracing the long Appalachian province from the Gulf of St.
Lawrence to the southwest and south, we find an immense accumu¬
lation of shale with some interbedded sandstone and limestone. This
extends to the Lake Champlain region of Hew York and Vermont. In

536

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

northern Vermont a great limestone of Lower Cambrian age is subja¬
cent to several thousand feet of shale, in which lenticular masses of
sandstone and limestone occur at irregular intervals. Farther to the
southwest, in southern V ermont and eastern New York, great thicknesses
of argillaceous sediment were deposited. These now form the series of
shales and slates in which massive beds of finely laminated roofing
slates occur. To the eastward, near the pre- Cambrian shore line, the
Lower Cambrian sandstones are followed by arenaceous, dolomitic, and
purely calcareous limestones of Lower and later Cambrian time. This
condition of sedimentation continues far to the south, varied more or less
by the presence of considerable thicknesses of shale above the lower
quartzite. In this case the limestone of Cambrian age forms a belt vary¬
ing from a few feet to several hundred feet in thickness at the summit
of the group.

During the held season of 1891 I examined, in company with Messrs.
Bailey Willis and M. R. Campbell, the Cambrian rocks of East Tennes¬
see. We found in the section west of Cleveland, in the southeastern
portion of the State, that a great series of variegated shales of Lower
Cambrian age occurred beneath a sandstone containing the Olenellus
fauna (Knox sandstone of S afford). In the upper portion of the sand¬
stone the central Middle Cambrian fauna occurs, and in the superjacent
shales and limestones the upper Middle Cambri an fauna. The variegated
shales and sandstone appear to be equivalent to the massive quartzite
nearer the shore line, as at Chilhowee Mountain.

In the Rocky Mountain province the siliceous sediments, sandstones,
and quartzites are followed by limestone, and nearer the shore line the
sandstones are subjacent to shale. Over the Interior province the record
is sandstone, followed on the west and southwest by alternating lime¬
stones and sandstones.

It is to be observed that over the Interior Continental area the basal
beds of the upper division rest unconformably upon pre-Cambrian rocks.
This is also true of the lower division on the Atlantic coast and along
the old shore lines of the Appalachian and Rocky Mountain provinces.
In the Lake Champlain Valley and the Southern Appalachian and the
Rocky Mountain provinces there is no positive assurance that the con¬
formable series of strata beneath the lowest known Cambrian zone do
not pass down into some pre-Cambrian group. This does not affect the
sedimentation of the Cambrian further tlia-n to show that it began in
those deep troughs in pre-Cambrian time, and that no orographic
movement disturbed the areas for a long time before and during Lower
Cambrian time.

An illustration of the shore and off-shore sedimentation occurs in the
area between the Green and Adirondack mountains, as shown on the
map (PI. xlii). In section No. 8 the coarse basal sandstone rests uu-
contormably upon the subjacent crystalline rocks and is succeeded by

WALCOTT.]

DEPOSITION OF SEDIMENTS.

537

a thin bed of shale and then a series of limestones. In this instance
it is assumed that the crystalline rocks of the Green Mountains origi¬
nally formed a land area not far to the eastward of the shore line from
which the sediments forming the sandstones were derived.

Section 7 is taken at a point some 15 miles distant from the shore
line, and its base is unknown. That portion which is preserved shows
an immense accumulation of mud, such as would be carried out by tidal
currents into a relatively shallow sea.

Section 23 illustrates the series of deposits on the western side of
this trough, next to the crystalline rocks of the Adirondack Mountains,
where only the sandstone is now found in the immediate vicinity of the
subjacent crystalline rocks. A little to the eastward, however, the
superjacent sandy limestone rests upon the sandstone, and superjacent
to this a great series of purer limestones.

Before proceeding further I wish to state that the series of strata re¬
ferred to the Cambrian group are characterized in their vertical thickness
by three subfaunas. The upper is found in the closing deposit of the
group, subjacent to the strata of the superjacent Lower Silurian (Ordo¬
vician) group. The middle occurs beneath the upper fauna in all sections
where the succession is complete, and the lower is found beneath the
middle fauna wherever the two have been observed in the same section.
It is by the evidence afforded by the occurrence of the three subfaunas
that the sediments of the Cambrian group are divided into three divi¬
sions — Lower, Middle, and Upper — and correlated when their strati¬
graphic continuity is interrupted.

It is assumed that when a subfauna is found in several different sec¬
tions in the same relative position in relation to another subfauna, that
it existed in practically the same period of time, and that the sediments
in which it is found should be correlated in the same general horizon.
It is by this means that three horizons are outlined and correlated in
the Cambrian group.

On the map showing the sections (PI. xlii) the upper division is
characterized by purple, the middle division by pink, and the lower divi¬
sion by yellow. It will be observed by the sections that the greatest
accumulation of sediments has been along the line of the Appalachian
range and in the western Rocky Mountain region. If we prepare a dia¬
grammatic cross section of the continent between the fortieth and forty-
fifth parallels we obtain the sections at the base of PI. xlii by assum¬
ing the Upper Cambrian as the horizon upon which to arrange the sec¬
tions. The latter was the last and closing epoch of sedimentation of the
Cambrian group, and the superjacent deposits of the Lower Silurian
(Ordovician) rest conformably upon it wherever they have been recog¬
nized.

The Upper Cambrian part of the section is not preserved in all the
sections on the immediate line of the cross section. It is found in all

538

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

but three, and it is known to occur above the basal sediments of the
latter sections within their respective geologic basins. As has been
stated, the Lower Silurian (Ordovician) strata are conformably super¬
jacent to the Upper Cambrian terrane whenever they have been recog¬
nized. This holds good over a great area, and it is now known that
the latter horizon has a great geographic distribution and is distinctly
marked in the American geologic series. The Middle Cambrian division
is nearly as great, while the basal division, or Lower Cambrian, is found
only on the margins of the pre-Cambrian plateau. (See PI. xlii.)

With the sections arranged upon the line of the Upper Cambrian the
sections across the continent show that upon the eastern side along the
line of the present Appalachian range there was a trough in which the
Upper, Middle, and Lower Cambrian sediments accumulated to a
great thickness. Between this trough and the Rocky Mountains there
is only the Upper and a small portion of the Middle Cambrian sand¬
stones which indicate the transgression of a sea upon the Great Interior
area toward the close of Middle Cambrian time. The western or Rocky
Mountain area has a somewhat similar trough to that of the Appalachian
region in which a great accumulation of sediments occurred during
Lower and Middle Cambrian time, prior to the deposition of the Upper
Cambrian sediments.

The study of all the known evidence bearing upon the sedimentation
of the rocks referred to the Cambrian indicates that the greater portion
of them were accumulated in relatively shallow seas, in the immediate
vicinity of the shores of land areas that were being slowly depressed in
relation to the surrounding sea level. There are some exception, as, for
instance, the deeper water limestone series of central Nevada, British
Columbia, and western Vermont, the upper limestone of the Cambrian
of Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama, the lower Middle Cambrian lime¬
stone of Alabama and Georgia, and perhaps the black shales of the
Atlantic province.

The evidence assembled on the map, PI. xlii, and the cross sections and
others of a similar character, in connection with the distribution of the
faunas sustains the view that at the beginning of Lower Cambrian time
the area of the Great Interior province formed part of a continent, to
the eastward and westward of which long ridges of pre-Cambrian rock
separated interior seas and straits from the continental area, and pro¬
tected their contained life and sediments from the ravages of the open
ocean. As the continent was slowly depressed and the waters advanced
upon the land the sediments now forming the rocks of the Lower and
Middle Cambrian series were accumulated in the various interior bodies
of water, to the eastward and westward of the main land area and
between it and the outlying ridges. What the contour of the south
and southeastern side of the continent was, and to what extent the sea
advanced upon it from the south during this time, is unknown, and may

\V ALOOTT. ]

DEPOSITION OF SEDIMENTS.

539

never be known, as only the formations that were deposited around the
pre-Cambrian islands of Texas and Missouri are now accessible for
study. From the evidence afforded by these two localities and that
along the eastern front of the Rocky Mountains and the exposures of
Cambrian strata in Wisconsin, Canada, etc., it is very probable that the
main portion of the continent north of the thirtieth and south of the
fiftieth parallel did not disappear beneath the advancing sea until near
the close of Middle Cambrian time. The unconformable position of the
Upper Cambrian rocks of the Interior Continental province upon the
subjacent Algonkian and Archean rocks sustain this conclusion.

As the sea was transgressing upon the surface of the continent on its
way northward across the broad interior in late Middle Cambrian time
it was also working along the base of the border ridges and depositing
the sediments derived from them and the adjoining drainage areas con¬
formably upon those deposited while the main mass of the continent
was above the sea. That these deposits were practically contempora¬
neous with those of the Interior province is proved by the presence of
the same types of animal life and to a considerable extent of identical
species.

Toward the close of Cambrian time a large portion of the pre-Cambrian
continent had disappeared beneath the surface of the sea (section at the
base of PI. xlii) and the great limestone-forming period of the Silurian
(Ordovician) began. In some areas, as about the Adirondack Moun¬
tains of New York, argillaceous and arenaceous sediments were derived
from the adjoining coast line, but as a whole mechanical sediments are
absent.1

I do not think it probable that any considerable amount of sediment
accumulated in the southern portion of the Interior Continental area
during early Cambrian time. The sections of the Champlain Valley,
East Tennessee, Utah, and Nevada, and of British Columbia prove
the accumulation of from 10,000 to 12,000 feet of sediment along the east¬
ern and western flanks of the pre-Cambrian continent before the sea
deposited the formations about the Llano Hills of Texas, the Ozark
Mountains of Missouri, and other portions of the Interior Continental
province. This leads to the belief that the continent stood at a consid¬
erable elevation above sea level and that the great accumulation of sed¬
iment during late Algonkian and early Cambrian time resulted from the
distribution of material worn from the shore by the waves and brought

'In speaking of the conditions of sedimentation, Messrs. Campbell and Ruffner state that “changes
such as these occurred during a series of geological ages of unknown length in a great inland sea which
was once connected with what is now the Gulf of Mexico on the south, limited, probably, by the high¬
lands of Canada on the northeast, having the Archean ledges of the Blue Ridge for its southeastern
border, and in all probability separated, in part at least, from the Pacific Ocean by the Rocky Moun¬
tain range. This extensive sea, with Archean rocks for its bottom that now constitute the surface
rocks and soils of the Mississippi Valley.” (A physical survey extending from Atlanta, Georgia,
across Alabama and Mississippi to the Mississippi River, along the line of the Georgia Pacific Railway.
New York, 1883, pp. 9, 10.)

540

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

into the sea by the rivers of the Interior Continental region and the out¬
lying ridges.1

Our knowledge of the sediments of the eastern and western sides of
the pre-Cambrian continent is considerable, but of that deposited
along the southward facing front we know nothing. From the fact,
however, that the same species of fossils occur in the Lower Cambrian
fauna of Labrador, Vermont, New York, Massachusetts, Tennessee,
Nevada, and British Columbia, I think we may hypothetically assume
the continuance of the Lower Cambrian beneath the deposits of the
Gulf States and westward through Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.
There is no known line of Lower and lower Middle Cambrian sedi¬
mentation across the continent to the north of this that indicates that
the fauna might have been distributed along a more northern shore.

The pre-Cambrian ridges, or protaxis of the present ranges of the
northeastern side of the continent, have been outlined by Prof. J. D.
Dana, from the known exposures of pre-Cambrian rocks.2 The Para-
doxides, or Middle Cambrian fauna, lived in the depression between
two of the eastern ridges of the Atlantic province in the New
Brunswick area, and in the bays and protected shores of the seaward
slope of the western ridge where the outer or eastern ridge was absent,
as in Massachusetts and Newfoundland. The sediments that accumu¬
lated to the eastward of the New Brunswick sea form the supposed
Cambrian shales and slates of Nova Scotia. The inner ridges of Maine,
New Hampshire, and Massachusetts bounded long, narrow seas, in
which the Cambrian faunas are not yet known to have penetrated.
The Lower Cambrian fauna probably passed from the Atlantic along
the ancient Labrador shore into the interior Appalachian sea. A few
types of the Middle Cambrian fauna followed, and then the passage
appears to have been closed, as the greater portion of the latter fauna
and none of the Upper Cambrian types of the Atlantic fauna have
been found in the deposits of the interior seas.3

PRE-CAMBRIAN LAND.

For the land that existed on the North American continental plateau
at the beginning of Cambrian time I proposed, in 1886, the name Ke-

1 It is not improbable that the area of the great coastal plain of the Atlantic slope was then an ele¬
vated portion of the continent and that much of the sediment deposited during Cambrian and later Pale¬
ozoic time was washed from it intc the seas to the west. If this be true the source of much of the sedi¬
ment of the Appalachian series of rocks is accounted for and the absence of the deposits of the eastern
coast line is explained by the sinking of the coastal region during or at the close of Paleozoic time.
This view is strengthened by the presence, in the Middle Cambrian fauna of Alabama, of a number of
species that are closely allied to, if not identical with, species of the Middle Cambrian fauna of New¬
foundland and Sweden. This fauna is unknown in the Appalachian province north of Alabama. It
leads to the inference that it was distributed along the shore of the Atlantic coast and that the series
of deposits containing it, between Massachusetts and Alabama, are buried deep beneath later deposits
of the coastal plain.

2 Areas of continental progress in North America and the influence of the condition of these areas
on the work carried forward within them. Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., 1890, vol. 1, pp. 36-39.

3 The study of the Middle Cambrian fauna proves that strongly defined zoologic provinces existed
in Cambrian time and were as well differentiated as any during Paleozoic time.

WALCOTT.]

PRE-CAMBRIAN LAND.

541

weenaw continent.1 This was done with the view in mind that the
Keweenawan rocks of the Lake Superior region, Grand Canyon and
Ckuar rocks of the Grand Canyon of the Colorado, and the Llano rocks
of Texas are outcrops of a group of strata of pre-Cambrian age. These
were united with the Huronian and other clastic sedimentary rocks be¬
neath them and the still older Laureutian or Arehean basement, to form
great land areas over two-thirds or more of the present continental
surface. The pre-Cambrian age of all of these rocks is proved by the un-
conformable overlap of the Cambrian sediments upon and against them
wherever the contacts of two series of rocks have been observed. Since
1889 the name Algonkian has been proposed for the sedimentary bedded
rocks beneath the Cambrian and superjacent to the crystalline base¬
ment series. As these rocks enter quite largely into the structure of
the laud area of pre-Cambrian time, the name is now adopted for the
continent at the beginning of Cambrian time.

The data for a study of the Arehean and Algonkian rocks that form
the Algonkian continent, and their relations to each other and to the
superjacent Cambrian rocks, are sufficient to establish the fact that
great orographic movements, followed by long-continued erosion, took
place between the Arehean and Algonkian and between the pre-Cam¬
brian and Cambrian strata all over the continental area, with perhaps
the exception of the sediments deposited in the great Appalachian and
Rocky Mountain troughs. (Pis. xlii and xliii.)

ATLANTIC COAST PROVINCE.

In the Atlantic coast province the rocks forming the Algonkian con¬
tinent comprise both the Arehean and Algonkian series. The relations
of the two are beautifully shown in some sections prepared by Dr. Alex¬
ander Murray, and published in the report of the Newfoundland Survey
for 1868.2

In a section from St. John to Great Bell Island, in Conception Bay,
11,3703 feet of the “Intermediate Rocks” of Murray, or the Algonkian
of the more recent classification, rest unconformably upon the Arehean
granite and gneisses, and the Lower Silurian of Murray, or Cambrian
of the present classification, also rest unconformably upon the Arehean.
On the map, published in 1881, of the Peninsula of Avalon, the Cambrian
strata at the head of St. Marys Bay are shown to transgress over the
subjacent beds of the Algonkian series.4

Farther to the southwest, in New Brunswick, the Cambrian strata
fill a number of narrow trough-like basins lying between the Bay of
Fundy and the central Carboniferous area. According to Mr. G. F.

■Am. Jour. Soi., 1886. vol. 32, p. 155.

2Geological Survey of Newfoundland. Report for 1868, p. 160 of revised edition published in 1881.

3Op. cit., p. 146.

4For the intermediate series of Dr. Murray, Dr. T. Sterry Hunt proposed, in 1870, the name Terra-
novan series, stating that he believed this series to also include certain rocks in Nova Scotia and New
Brunswick that rest unconformably upon the Laurentian series (Am. Jour. Sei., 2d ser., 1870, vol. 50,
p. 87).

542

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

Matthew the sediments forming the base of the Cambrian series are
derived from the subjacent Huronian rocks, and the conglomerate at
the base indicates a time when the Cambrian Sea invaded the valleys
of the Huronian formation near St. John.1

The Cambrian rocks of the Boston basin appear to have been depos¬
ited upon the pre-Cambrian Algonkian and Archean rocks, as in the
New Brunswick and Newfoundland areas. At a later date, however,
they were broken up and thoroughly disturbed by intrusive masses of
diorite, followed by granite and felsites.2

Farther to the south in the North Attleboro district, near the Rhode
Island line, Prof. N. S. Shaler found that Cambrian rocks apparently
rest upon pre-Cambrian gneissoid rock of various combinations, and
what appear in part, at least, to be metamorphose conglomerates and
shale.3 Prof. Shaler thinks that the rocks of apparently pre-Cambrian
age may possibly be assigned to the Huronian period.

A glance at the map of the Peninsula of Avalon, already mentioned,
indicates that Cambrian rocks were deposited in the depressions that
now form the numerous bays penetrating the peninsula. This is also
shown by the sections of Dr. Murray, and from a personal examination
of the strata about Conception and St. Marys Bay I do not think there
has been any material change in the relative geographic position of the
coast line of the great bays since pre-Cambrian time.

In Labrador and southwest, up the northern side of the St. Lawrence
Valley, the pre-Cambrian rocks appear to belong to the Archean or
basement series, and on the south side to the Algonkian.

APPALACHIAN PROVINCE.

From Montreal southwest to the Lake Champlain Basin the pre-
Cambrian rocks of Sutton Mountain and the western slopes of the Green
Mountains appear to belong to the Algonkian series.

North of Westport, New York, on the Adirondack side of the basin,
the Cambrian rocks rest unconformably upon gneisses and the norite of
the basement series. To the south of Westport the contact is with the
Algonkian that rests unconformably upon the subjacent strata upon
which the Cambrian rests farther to the north. The relation in this
region of the Potsdam sandstones of the Cambrian to the Algonkian
and pre- Algonkian rocks are such as to prove that they were deposited
in bays along a shore line that had essentially the same topographic
features as at present. These same conditions prevail wherever the
contact with the Cambrian and pre-Cambrian rocks is clearly shown
in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, and Ala¬
bama. The Cambrian rocks are frequently tilted and broken by the
upward movement of the pre-Cambrian series, but as a Avliole they pre-

‘Trans. Roy. Soc. of Canada, 1883, vol. 1, pp. 87-88.

’Crosby, W. O., Teachers’ School of Science, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., Physical History of Boston Basin,
1889, pp. 19-21.

’Bulletin, Museum of Comparative Zoology, 1888, vol. 16, pp. 15-17,

walcott.] PRE-CAMBRIAN LAND. 543

serve to a remarkable degree their position in relation to the rocks over
and against which they were originally deposited.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN PROVINCE.

Of the areas of Algonkian rocks in the Rocky Mountain region Mr. S.
F. Emmons said, in a late communication:

Only a few isolated exposures have yet been discovered in the Rocky Mountain
region, and these have not been sufficiently studied to attempt any correlation be¬
tween them.1

Over the other portions of the Rocky Mountains the Algonkian con¬
tinent seems to have been formed of the Archean basement or the dis¬
tinctly crystalline rocks. The areas where the relation of the Cambrian,
Algonkian, and pre- Algonkian rocks are shown are those of the Grand
Canyon of the Colorado in northern Arizona; on the north slope of the
San Juan Mountains, near Ouray, Colorado; in the hills east of the
Arkansas River, at Salida, and south of the South Park, also in the
Medicine Bow Range and the eastern flanks of the Colorado Range.
Quartzites have also been noticed connected with the Archean of the
southern end of the Sangre de Cristo Range, Colorado.2

Of the rocks forming the Black Hills uplift of South Dakota, Prof.
C. R. Van Hise says: “The Black Hills rocks exhibit a remarkable
lithological analogy to certain of the iron-bearing series of the Lake
Superior region, which in the past has been included under the term
Hnronian. While this correlation is not beyond doubt, there is no
question that these series in common belong to the Algonkian period.”3

INTERIOR CONTINENTAL PROVINCE.

In his beautiful memoir on the classification of the earlier Cambrian
and pre-Cambrian rocks, Prof. R. D. Irving has shown that the pre-
Cambrian continent in the Lake Superior region is formed of the Arch¬
ean basement, unconformably upon which rests the Algonkian series,
composed of several distinct groups of rocks.4

In Llano County, Texas, there is a great deposit of the Algonkian
rocks similar to those of the northern Arizona section in the Grand
Canyon of the Colorado, and there are probably some of the remnants of
the Archean basement beneath the Algonkian. In Missouri the pre-
Cambrian rocks apparently belong largely to the Archean basement
series.

RESUME.

From the brief outline that has been given it appears that the Archean
basement rocks of the continent occupied a considerable area or areas
above sea level at the beginning of Algonkian time, and there is little

1 Bulletin of the Geological Society of America, 1890, vol. 1, p. 256.

2 Op. cit., p. 257.

3 Bulletin, Geological Society of America, 1890, vol. 1, p. 242.

4 Seventh Ann. Rept. U. S. Geol. Surv., 1888, pp. 365-454.

544

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

doubt that the Algonkiau rocks were deposited during the downward
oscillations of that continental area or areas. Over and against the
Archean rocks of the continental plateau several successive series of
sediments were deposited, which now form the various Algonkian ter-
ranes. In the Lake Superior region Prof. Irving states that these reach
a thickness of 60,000 feet or more; in Canada,1 north of Lake Ontario,2
the Hasting series is credited with a thickness of 21,130 feet, of which
9,000 feet or more will fall into the Algonkian. In the Ottawa district
this series is probably over 20,000 feet in thickness;3 in the Grand
Canyon of the Colorado, northern Arizona, there is over 11,500 feet of
unaltered Algonkian rocks;4 in Newfoundland Dr. Murray measured
a section of nearly 12,000 feet in thickness,5 between the Archean base¬
ment and the known Cambrian, and wherever erosion has removed later
deposits so as to deeply expose the Archean basement to any consider¬
able extent, there are traces of Algonkian sediments.

At the close of the deposition of the Algonkian series there appears
to have been an orographic movement that affected more or less of the
entire continental plateau. It was not as profound as the one preceding
Algonkian time, as is proved by the more highly contorted and dis¬
turbed Archean rocks beneath the relatively less disturbed Algonkian
series. Locally the Algonkian rocks are inclined, distorted, and broken,
but not with the same intensity as the subjacent Archean basement. I
fully realize that this statement is open to criticism, as the line of de-
markation between the Archean basement andAlgonkian is not yet well
determined; but where the two are well defined, as in the Lake Superior
region, this condition is found to prevail. Again, I do not wish to imply
that all the Algonkian orographic movements were of one date, as there
were several between Archean and Cambrian time.

With the close of the Algonkian period of deposition and the subse¬
quent orographic movement, erosion began to prepare the surface
upon which the Cambrian sediments were deposited. Before proceeding
to describe what is known of this I wish to draw attention to the series
of conformable pre-Cambrian rocks now found in the Appalachian and
Rocky Mountain troughs. Referring to the theoretic section at the base
of PI. xlii, the position of these beds is readily seen, especially in the
Rocky Mountain trough. From numerous sections in Utah, Nevada,
Montana, and British Columbia we find that there is from 10,000 to
20,000 feet of sediments conformably beneath the known fossiliferous
Cambrian rocks. What the relations of these sediments are to the
disturbed Algonkian rocks of the Lake Superior, Grand Canyon, and
central Texas region is unknown. They are apparently some portion

■On the classification of the early Cambrian and pre-Cambrian formations. Seventh Ann. Iiept. U.
S. Geol. Surv., 1888, p. 438.

2Geol. Surv. Canada, Iiept. Prog, for 1866-1869, 1870, pp. 144-145.

3 Geol Surv. Canada, Kept. Prog, for 1863, p. 45.

4 Am. Jour. Sci., 3d ser., 1883, vol. 26, p. 441. Ibid, 1886, vol. 32, p. 143.

5 Geol. Sur. Newfoundland, Kept, for 1868, Revised Ed. 1881, pp. 145, 146.

WALCOTT.]

PRE-CAMBRIAN LAND.

545

of the deposits accumulated in the interval of erosion between the
uplifting of the Algonkian deposits of the central and northeastern
portions of the continent and the beginning of known Cambrian time.
That they represent the sedimentation of a portion of that interval is
quite probable, but to what extent can not be known until the faunas
are obtained to furnish the necessary data for correlation. If the
faunas are of a Cambrian facies the rocks will be referred to the Cam¬
brian, as is done at present on structural evidence.

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION.

The geographic distribution of the pre-Cambrian land is based upon
(a) the evidence afforded by the absence of Cambrian deposits upon
known pre-Cambrian rocks; (b) the existence of shore lines during earlier
Cambrian time; (c) the presence of deep-water deposits.

The pre-Cambrian areas over which there does not appear to have
been any sediments deposited during Middle, Upper, and post-Cambrian
time are limited to the nucleal V of the northern portions of the con¬
tinent about Hudson Bay; the Appalachians and the Atlantic coast
ridges, and those of the Rocky Mountains and Coast Range on the
opposite side of the continent. The two points recognized in the great
interior basin are the Ozark uplift of Missouri and the Llano area of
central Texas. These areas were larger at the beginning of Cambrian
time than at its close, owing to erosion and the gradual depression of
the continental surface during that period. The area is fairly well rep¬
resented by the horizontally lined portions marked A, A, A, and the
islands of Missouri and Texas, as shown on PI. xliii.

DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XLIII.

Hypothetical map of the North American continent at the begin¬
ning of and during Lower Cambrian time.

This map is based upon the columnar sections shown on PI. xlii
and many others not represented and the theoretic sections at the base
of PI. xlii. The geographic position of the columnar sections on the
two maps is indicated by a circle with a corresponding number on each
map. The shaded portions indicate the relative areas that are sup¬
posed to have been above the ocean during later Algonkian and Lower
Cambrian time.

A=Archean; K = Keweenawan; B=Black Hills of Dakota; T=
Llano area of Texas; M = Ozark uplift of Missouri; C=Grand Canyon
area of Arizona. The area marked XXX indicates a hypothetical
land area of the existence of which we have not at present any abso¬
lute proof, as it is now covered by sediments of later age than the Cam¬
brian. The portions left white within the boundary of the continental
plateau were either covered by the sea or are areas of which there is
not sufficient data to express an opinion upon the relations of the land
and water.

12 GEOL

■35

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

546

Over all tlie shaded areas, with the exception of a large central area
marked XXX, there is data to establish fairly well the presence of land
at the beginning of Cambrian time. Within the area marked XXX
the pre-Cambrian rocks are covered and concealed by later deposits,
but from the topographic features of the continent and the distribution
of the Lower Cambrian fauna in the Appalachian and Rocky Moun¬
tain troughs, it is assumed that the area marked XXX formed a por¬
tion of the continental surface at the beginning of Cambrian time.
How much greater the area was in the Northwest and South is unknown
at the present time. It is quite probable that the Pacific Coast Range
extended northward into Alaska and that the western arm of the Archean
“ nucleal V” continued on to the Northwest, and much of the area north
of Hudson Bay was probably above the sea at that time. How many
bays and inland seas existed over the area marked X X X is necessarily
unknown and probably never will be known. Great fresh-water lakes
may have existed and either marine or nonmarine sediments may have
been deposited. From the distribution of the older Cambrian faunas,
however, there does not appear to have been any continuous connection
by water from the Appalachian to the Rocky Mountain trough except
along the southern side of XXX.

With the present data the geographic distribution of the land is
theoretically represented at the beginning of Lower Cambrian time on
PI. XT ATT.

SURFACE OF THE PRE-CAMBRIAN LAND.

The features of the pre-Cambrian surface are indicated by the rela¬
tion of the known Cambrian and post-Cambrian formations to that
surface where it is exposed. The data will be assembled and discussed
under the geographic provinces as outlined on PI. xlii. These are:

A. Atlantic Coast province.

B. Appalachian province.

C. Rocky Mountain province.

1). Interior or Continental province.

The latter is subdivided into I)1 or the central interior, or the Upper
Mississippi Valley and Missouri; I)2, the northeastern interior; D3,
the western interior; D4, the southwestern interior.

ATLANTIC COAST PROVINCE.

At all points on the eastern coast of Newfoundland where Cambrian
rocks have been observed they rest unconformably upon the subjacent
Archean and Algoukian rocks. The study of the map of the Renin- '
sula of Avalon, published by the Geological Survey of Newfoundland
in 1881, indicates by the geographic distribution of the Cambrian
rocks that they were deposited in the deep bays that penetrate the
peninsula. After a personal examination of the deposits of Concep¬
tion and St. Marys Bays and their relations to the Archean and Algon-

library

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XLIII

WALCOTT.]

SURFACE OF PRE-CAMBRIAN LAND.

547

kiau rocks, I fully agree with the views set forth in the
accompanying the report of 1868 of the Geological Survey
foundland, by Dr. Alexander Murray. These
indicate that Conception Bay existed as a bay
in pre-Cambrian time, and that erosion has re¬
moved a great amount of Cambrian sediment
that originally extended far inland from the
present coast line. The fragments remaining
prove that the sediments were accumulated in
bays and along the shore line east of the Ar¬
ch ean ridge that crosses the island just west of
the Avalon Peninsula, and it is quite probable
that a barrier existed to the eastward toward
the eastern margin of the continental plateau.

The Algonkian rocks about St. Johns may pos¬
sibly be a portion of it.

In speaking of the Paleozoic rocks of south¬
western Newfoundland Dr. Alexander Murray
said :

Rocks of Lower Silurian age were found reposing upon
the upturned or corrugated edges of the older system,
usually in depressions on the axis of undulations, fre¬
quently in a perfectly horizontal attitude, and with but
few exceptions, rarely showing a dip from the horizon
of more than 10° or 12°. These are arranged in the form
of elongated narrow troughs, extending lengthwise in
the same direction as the axis on which they rest.1

Iii a section a little to the south at the head
of Conception Bay the Lower Cambrian rests
directly upon the eroded pre-Cambian Arelieau
gneiss. The accompanying section illustrates
the contact and position of the Cambrian rocks
in relation to the Arcliean.

A ridge of Arcliean rocks separates the Cam¬
brian deposits of the Avalon Peninsula from
those occuring farther to the west about Despair
Bay.

Farther to the southwest in New Brunswick
the Cambrian strata till a number of narrow
trough-like basins lying between the Bay of
Fundy and the central Carboniferous area, and
Mr. G. F. Matthew concludes that these sedi¬
ments were deposited in valleys of the Huro-
nian formation.2

1 Geological Survey Newfoundland. Report for 1868, p. 140 of
reprint, 1881.

2 Trans. Roy. Soc. Canada, 1883, vol. 1, pp. 87, 88,

sections
of New-

548

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

^ 5

I)r. W. O. Crosby, in speaking of tbe slates tliat lie refers to tlie pri¬
mordial period on the coast of Maine which are super¬
jacent to granites and schists, states that they occur
only in arms of the Gulf of Maine and nowhere far
above the present level of the sea, thus indicating
that the existing coast line, at least in its main fea¬
tures, is of very great antiquity and stability.1

The Cambrian rocks of the Boston basin appear to
have been deposited in a bay upon the pre-Cambrian,
Algonkian, and Arcliean rocks, as in the New Bruns¬
wick and Newfoundland areas. At a later date, how¬
ever, they were broken up and thoroughly disturbed
by intrusive masses of diorite, followed by granite and
felsites.2

It is not to be understood that the Cambrian rocks
now hold the same relation to sea level that they did
when deposited. On the contrary, in the Boston
basin, and also in New Brunswick in the vicinity of
St. John, they have been greatly disturbed by. the
movements of the subjacent Arcliean and Algonkian
rocks, and even in Newfoundland, where the disturb¬
ance is least, they dip at angles varying from 2 to 20
degrees. About Conception Bay they are nearly
horizontal, but to the south, around the shore of St.
Marys, they are much more disturbed. It is by the
study of the undisturbed portions and the general
relations of the entire exposures to the older rocks
that the configuration of the pre-Cambrian surface
is determined.

The Cambrian rocks undoubtedly extended in the
Atlantic coast province over very much larger areas
than the remnants of them now found indicate. That
they have been subjected to long-continued erosion,
perhaps since Paleozoic time, appears to be fair infer¬
ence from the recorded observations.

H 8

r/ y- £ a
;/'Vr^y A o

a "
r 8 ^

iV' r-l C

APPALACHIAN PROVINCE.

On the northern side of the Strait of Belle Isle
Labrador, the Cambrian sandstones rest unconfcrm-
ably upon the gently sloping Archean rocks. Numer¬
ous streams have cut channels from the higher up¬
land rocks through the sandstones down to the sea,
so as to show that the slope of the sandstones is
about 00 feet to the mile.3

•Geology of Frenchmans Bay. Boat. Soc. Nat. Hist. Proc., 1881, vol. 21, p. 117.

2 Teacher’s School of Science. Boat. Soc. Nat. Hist. Physical History of tho Boston Basin, 1889, pp
19-21.

3 Geology of Canada, 1863, p. 864.

WALCOTT.]

SURFACE OF PRE -CAM BRIAN LAND.

549

When describing the Potsdam group of the St. Lawrence Valley and
the northern side of the Adirondacks, Sir
William E. Logan wrote as follows:

That portion of the Potsdam group which has
here been described appears to have been depos¬
ited in shallow water along the margin of the
Lower Silurian Sea, and a wind-mark on one of
the surfaces connected with the track beds at
Beauharnois proves incontestably that these beds
were uncovered at the ebb of tide. In the eight
localities in which these tracks have been met
with, extending on the strike of the formation for
about 400 miles, the beds on which they are im¬
pressed are always of the same lithological char¬
acter, and seem to stand in the same relation to
the summit of the formation where this can be
ascertained. We have thus good reason to believe
that all these beds were at nearly the same geo¬
graphical level at the same time. Three of the
localities occur along the foot of the Laurentide
Hills, from which the beds stretch out at a very
low angle into the Silurian plain in front. The
hills, at no very great distance from the outcrop
of the Potsdam formation, rise to heights vary¬
ing from 500 to nearly 4,000 feet; and while the
sand at their base lay between the ebb and flood
of tide, the flank of the Laurentide Mountains
must have formed the coast of the Lower Silurian
Sea. As has already been stated, these hills ex¬
tend from Labrador to the Arctic Ocean, and we
can thus trace out this ancient limit of the ocean
for 3,500 miles.

The thoroughly rounded form of the grains of
sand composing a large portion of the deposit,
and the fact that all the material other than
quartz has been bruised up and washed out from
so much of it, ivould seem to make it probable
that the formation accumulated slowly, and that
the Potsdam coast remained unchanged for a
great length of time. The fact, however, that
the formation is in some places overlapped by
the succeeding deposit would seem to show that
a subsidence had commenced toward the end of
the epoch ; and the passage, by interstratification
with the succeeding rock, which is so distinct in
many places, appears to indicate that the subsi¬
dence was slow and gradual. Its duration and
the area affected by it must be proved by the ac¬
cumulation and distribution of the succeeding
formations.1

1 Geology of Canada, 1863, pp. 108, 109.

550

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

A section extending from tlie north side of St. Lawrence Valley
across tlie St. Lawrence to the Archean of the Adirondacks illustrates
very clearly Sir William Logan’s idea of the shallow sea in this portion
of the St. Lawrence region during Cambrian time. It is shown in the
accompanying figure (Fig. 70).

Other sections of this portion of the St. Lawrence Valley illustrate
the shallow character of the Cambrian and Lower Silurian seas, and
lead to the conclusion that this portion of the Algonkian continent
had about reached its base level of erosion prior to Upper Cambrian
time.

The sloping shores of the northern side of the Adirondacks are re¬
placed upon the eastern side by more steeply inclined slopes. This is
shown at Whitehall, Yew York, where erosion has removed the
Potsdam sandstone from the inclined mountain side of Archean rocks
on the west. The massive beds of Potsdam sandstone upon the oppo¬
site side of the valley to the eastward are only the upper members of
the great thickness of Cambrian rocks that have been upturned a few
miles to the eastward in Washington County. The deep trough in
which these accumulated also extended northward through western
Vermont to the Canadian border and southward into the valley of the
Hudson.

Where the contacts of the Potsdam sandstone with the subjacent
Archean and Algonkian rocks of the Adirondacks occur the sandstone
is usually in evenly bedded layers, that rarely dip more than 10 degrees
to the eastward. Often they are quite horizontal. They occur in the
old bays, hollows, and indentations of the Algonkian shore line in such
a manner as to leave little if any doubt in the mind of the observer that
the relation of the pre-Cambrian Algonkian lands and the Cambrian
deposits were the same when the sediments were being deposited as
at the present day, and that the Algonkian topography has varied
little since that time. On the western side of the Adirondacks, in
Jefferson, St. Lawrence, and Franklin counties, the Potsdam sandstones
rest upon the undulating Algonkian surface very much as described by
Sir William E. Logan for the Canadian area to the north.

On the western slopes of the Green Mountains the u granular quart¬
zite” of the Lower Cambrian rests uncomformably upon the Algonkian
and Archean rocks in such a manner as to indicate that the outlines of
the shore have not materially changed since Algonkian time. In many
instances the Cambrian sandstones have been upturned and displaced
by orographic movements during and at the close of Paleozoic time,
but there is little difficulty in fixing the approximate position of the old
shore line by the presence of conglomerates, sandstones, and in many
instances absolute contact with the subjacent pre-Cambrian rocks of the
Algonkian land.1

1 See map accompanying the Taconic system of Emmons, and tlie use of the name Taconic in goologic
nomenclature. (Am. Jour. Sci., 1888, vol. 35, PI. in.)

WALCOTT.]

SURFACE OF PRE-CAMBRIAN LAND.

551

The general outlines of the western border of the Appalachian Al-
gonkian land are broadly shown upon the geological map of the United
States issued by the Geological Survey in 1884. The study of the local
sections and outcrops of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Vir¬
ginia, Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama tends to prove that theAlgon-
kian land upon the eastern side of the Appalachian troughs was bold
and precipitous, and in fact the westward facing side of a mountainous
area.

Of the character of the eastern shore of the Appalachian trough south
of the Adirondack region we know nothing except that in eastern Ten¬
nessee there is an approach to a shore line indicated by the mechanical
sediments. It is not known where the shore line was, but the fact that
in the Missouri and Texas areas there were no Lower Cambrian sedi¬
ments deposited, and probably only those of the later Middle Cambrian,
indicates that there was a shore line somewhere between these points
and the Appalachian Mountain range east of the Appalachian trough.

110CKY MOUNTAIN PROVINCE.

There have been two views expressed on the character of the pre-
Cambrian continental surface in the Kocky Mountain region. In the
first Mr. G. K. Gilbert states that the pre- Silurian strati graphical break
is as complete and universal in the West as in the Eastern States and
Canada. He says:1

There are two general facts in regard to the geological history of the great West
that deserve especial mention, for the reason that while some of the individual in¬
stances on which they depend have long been known, it is only recently that they
have been announced in such number, and with such distribution as to dissipate all
doubt that their meaning is general rather than local. The first is that the pre-
Silurian stratigraphical break is as complete and as universal in the West as it is
in the Eastern States and Canada. Its existence has been determined in Nebraska,
Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Texas, New Mexico, and Ari¬
zona, and its general features are everywhere the same. There is, first, a wide non¬
conformity, demonstrating the tilting and erosion of the Archean beds anterior to
the deposition of the Silurian; and, second, there is always at the contact a contrast
of condition as regards meramorphism, the Silurian rocks being, usually, merely in¬
durated and the Archean invariably highly metamorpliic.

These two characters of the break serve to show that it represents a vast chasm of
time, a chasm the duration of which may have been greater than that of the ages
which have since elapsed. A third character of the break, one that is supported by
less evidence, but is negatived by none, is that the lowest of the superposed rocks
are conglomerates and coarse sandstones. The lowest Paleozoic rocks are primordial
and the basal portion of the Primordial is everywhere siliceous and of coarse texture.
Where the Primordial is absent, and the Carboniferous rests directly on the Archean,
a limestone has been observed at the contact, but this is a local phenomenon, the
meaning of which is that certain Archean mountains were islands in the Silurian
sea and were afterward covered or more deeply submerged by the Carboniferous sea.

1 Geog. and Geol. Expl. and Surveys West of One hundredth Merid., 1875, Geology, vol. 3, pp. 521-522.

552

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

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The conclusion to he drawn from the coarse fragmental
nature of the lower deposits is that the water which
spread them was an encroaching ocean, rising to possess
land that had long been dry. The recognized interpreta¬
tion of a widespread sandstone is continental submer¬
gence, or, what is the same thing, an advancing coast line,
and where the formation is important in depth, as well as
breadth, we must suspect at least that the shore waves
sorted not merely the detritus which they themselves tore
from cliffs of indurated rock, but other debris which they
found already ground and which needed only redistribu¬
tion. The Tonto sandstone of the Grand Canon and its
equivalent in other Territories may fairly be regarded as
the coarser of the debris accumulated by subaerial agen¬
cies on the Archean continent; the continent — that is,
which immediately preceded the Silurian sea, and the Tonto
shale and its equivalents, as the liner and lighter part of
the same debris, sorted out by primordial beach action
and deposited in the stiller water that followed in the
wake of the advancing shore. It would, perhaps, be out
of place to controvert here the familiar presentation of
eastern Paleozoic history as an emergence, beginning with
the uplift of the Laurentian highlands, but it may confi¬
dently be asserted that western Paleozoic history is the
reverse of this. There was a time when Archean high¬
lands constituted islands in a Paleozoic sea, but this con¬
dition was produced, not by the emergence of these islands
as the nuclei of a growing continent, but by the submer¬
gence of the surrounding area, and the consequent abolition
of a continent, and, so far as we can judge of the remote¬
ness of shores and of the depth of water, by the relative
importance of calcareous and earthy soluble and insoluble
deposits, the general movement of laud through the entire
Paleozoic age was a subsidence. Of the extent of the pre-
Silurian continent we know absolutely nothing. No por¬
tion of its shore is determined, nor the position of any res¬
ervoir for the reception of its waste. The break which its
existence made in the sedimentary history of this portion
of the world appears to be absolute, and with its extinc¬
tion as a continent and division into islands by the Pri¬
mordial sea begins our acquaintance with the early limits
of land and water.

The second, by Mr. Clarence King, is less gen¬
eral and the observations were confined to a more
limited area. In speaking of the surface upon
which the Paleozoic rocks were deposited north
of the line of the fortieth parallel, between the
Archean highlands of western Nevada and Medi¬
cine Bow range, Colorado, or between the one
hundred and fifth and one hundred and twentieth
meridians, he says:1

1 II. S. Geol. Expl. of Fortieth parallel. Systematic Geology, 1878, vol.
1, pp. 228, 229.

WALCOTT. ]

SURFACE OF PRE-CAMBRIAN LAND

553

Referring to Analytical Geological Map I, accompanying the Archean chapter,
ami observing the ideal section at the bottom of the map, the reader will perceive
that the bed on which
the Paleozoic series
have been imposed was
by no means a plain;
on the contrary, it was
a vast - mountain sys¬
tem which had suffered
submergence, and over
which the Paleozoic
sediment settled. One
feature of importance
is the fact that there is
little or no tendency
on the part of the sedi- |
ments of a given hori¬
zon to follow the hill
slopes, but in all cases
where observed they
abut directly against
them as if deposited in °-
absolute horizontality.

Owing to the very great
height of these Archean
ranges, reaching in one
instance an abrupt cliff
slope of 30,000 feet, the
earlier sediments, those
of the Cambrian and
Silurian, must have
been deposited chiefly
in what were the val¬
leys of the submerged
Archean mountain sys¬
tem. The base of the
Cambrian is never seen.

To the full section, as
observed, there is,
therefore, an unknown
plus quantity to be
added.

Iii 1877 Mr. Olar-
enceKing expressed
the view that “Ar-
chean America was
made up of what
was original ly ocean
beds lifted into the
air and locally
crumpled into vast
mountain chains,

554

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

says that1 “in pre-Cambrian time this continental area sank, leaving
some of its mountain tops as islands, and the neighboring oceans flowed
over it, their bottoms emerging and becoming continents.” The rate of
depression of the Archean continent is considered to have been more
rapid upon the Atlantic side than upon the Pacific. To account for the
vast volume of sediment poured into the Paleozoic ocean it is suggested
that continental land areas (Atlantis and Pacifis) existed east and west of
the present continental area. From the character of the sediments he
concludes that the eastern side went down by gradual and successive sub¬
sidence, and that the western sank at once so as to form a profound
ocean, which, from beginning to end of the vast Paleozoic age, received
in its quiet depth the dust of a continent and the debris of an ocean life.2

In the Grand Canyon area of northern Arizona a base level of erosion
appears to have been reached before the Cambrian rocks exposed on the
line of the canyon section were deposited. Both the Archean and
Algonkian rocks were eroded nearly to a horizontal plane, prior to the
deposition of the Upper Cambrian sandstone. Here and there a harder
layer of lava or quartzite forms a low ridge, but as a whole, the basal
layers of the Cambrian were deposited upon a nearly level surface.
This is well shown in the accompanying figure (Fig. 78).

INTERIOR CONTINENTAL PROVINCE.

After speaking of the geography at the close of the Keweenawan
period, Prof. T. C. Chamberlin says:3

As soon as the foregoing elevation [Keweenawan] had lifted the region from the sea,
arching it upward into lofty land, a fresh impetus was given to the old-time never-
ending process of land- wearing and sea-filling. The rains and the agencies which
they called into action softened, dissolved, and abraded the surface, and bore the
resulting material down to the sea to fill its bed, and, to that extent, to lift its sur¬
face. The sea, on its part, ground away at the borders of the land, wearing hack
the shore line, little by little, through the lapse of ages. These general facts are
certain, but for a long period following the Keweenawan elevation, during which the
sea was slowly readvancing from the distance to which it had retired, and before it
again reached our borders, there is, in the interior, no definite record of geological
events, for the deposits are concealed. What were the special details of that long
history we may never know from any evidence found in the interior of our continent.

When speaking of the geography of the Potsdam period he says:4

To picture the geographical circumstances that attended the commencement of the
Potsdam formation, the earliest Wisconsin member of the Paleozoic series, conceive
the whole or the greater portion of our State to be above the sea, and to be attached
to the Archean continent lying to the northward, forming oue of its southward-
projecting promontories. The sea lay to the southward, and during the period
gradually advanced upon the land. At a very early stage it crept up through the
basin of the lower peninsula of Michigan, and entered the depression of Lake
Superior. At the same time it appears to have advanced through the stratigraphical

1 Catastrophism and Evolution. Am. Nat., 1877, vol. 11, p. 455.

2 Op. eit., p. 456.

3 Geological Survey of Wisconsin, 1873, vol. 1, p. 116.

4Ibid.,p. 119.

WALCOTT.]

SURFACE OF PRE-CAMBRIAN LAND

555

basin lying beneath Iowa and southern Minnesota, and reached well to the north¬
ward on that side, partially surrounding the Arcliean heights of northern Wisconsin,
forming a peninsula connected with the mainland only by an isthmus in the upper
St. Croix region. This stage was apparently reached at about the middle of the
period. During the latter part the sea continued its advance, reducing the peninsula
and narrowing the isthmus. It is a matter of some difference of opinion whether or
not by the close of the period the neck of land was entirely severed, making the
peninsula an island. In the judgment of the writer the sea crossed the neck, cutting
off the Archean heights and reproducing the Island of Wisconsin. If this view be
correct the water swept entirely around the old granite highlands, submerging
three-fourths or more of the State, but leaving reefs and islets formed of resistant
portions of the Huronian rocks, lying off the southern shore of the main island m
central Wisconsin. (See PI. xliv, Fig. 1.)

Prof. R. I). Irving after describing tlie lithological characters of the
rocks that form the pre-Potsdam land surface of Wisconsin, says:1

The surface is one, in the main, of but gentle undulation. In the vicinity of
Lake Superior it reaches an altitude of about 1,000 feet above the level of Lake
Michigan ; underneath the horizontal formations of the southern part of the map it
stands about 500 feet below the same level, having at the present time a general
southerly descent. Looked at in greater detail, however, it is seen to have numerous
minor and often somewhat abrupt irregularities. The more abrupt of these have an
evident genetic relation to the durability and general resisting power of the rocks
which compose them. These prominences, in that portion of the ancient land sur¬
face which is still uncovered by later formations, reach at times elevations of from
100 to 600 feet above the general surface. Those that rise from beneath the Potsdam
sandstone rise to about the same extent above the general level of the surface upon
which that formation lies. There is one exception to this, however, in the case of
the Baraboo Ranges, the present elevation of whose summits above the general
Archean surface is in the neighborhood of 1,200 feet, the rock being of an unusually
resistant nature.

Of the opportunities for studying the ancient pre-Cambrian surface
Prof. Irving says:

It is doubtful whether anywhere in the world there are to be met with among the
ancient formations more admirable reproductions of the conditions which obtain at
the present time on every cliffy seashore than are found in the Baraboo region.
A few days’ examination of this region enables one to obtain a most vivid mental
picture of the conditions which obtained at the time when the sandstone was in
process of accumulation. He sees great east-and-west rocky ridges, at times with
jagged edges just awash, at other times rising into smoothed and rounded rocky
islets, and again buried some distance beneath the surface of the sea, aud all about
and against them growing the deposits of the sand washed from them by the waves.2

DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XLIV.

1. Vertical section across northern central Wisconsin during the
deposition of the Upper Cambrian (Potsdam) sandstone. (After
Chamberlin, Geology of Wisconsin, vol. 1, 1883, PI. 5, section.)

2. Section displayed to view on the east side of the gorge at the
upper narrows of the Baraboo River, showing the unconformity

1 On the classification of the early Cambrian and ure-Cambrian formations, Seventh Ann. Kept, of the
U. S. Geol. Survey, 1888, p. 401.

2 Ibid., p. 407.

556

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

between the Potsdam sandstone and the subjacent Hnronian quartzite.
(After Irving, Seventh Ann. Rep. U. S. Geological Survey, p. 407, Fig.
80.)

3. Section on Black River in the vicinity of Black River Falls, Wis.,
showing the Potsdam sandstone resting on an eroded surface composed
of granite and steeply inclined layers of gneiss and ferruginous schists.
Scale, 2 miles to the inch. (After Irving, Seventh Ann. Rep. U. S.
Geological Survey, p. 403, Fig. 75.)

4. Section from southeast to northwest in the St. Croix River region
of northwestern Wisconsin, through the Keweenawan series and Potsdam
sandstone. (After Irving, Seventh Ann. Rep. U. S. Geological Survey,
p. 413, Fig. 88.)

The pre-Cambrian land surface of the Ozark area of Missouri is
beautifully illustrated by some topographical sections of the Pilot
Knob district prepared by Prof. R. Pumpelly.1 These sections show
that the sandstones and magnesian limestones of the Upper Cambrian
and Lower Silurian (Ordovician) were deposited in the basins and
against the sides of the Archean hills and ridges of pre-Cambrian
rocks.

Prof. J. C. Broadhead, in discussing the geological history of the
Ozark uplift, says:2

The evidence is that the sandstones and magnesian limestones (Potsdam and Calci-
ferous) were deposited in Arehean valleys of erosion, for they generally repose
nearly horizontally, or with slight inclination upon the Archean.

The pre-Cambrian surface of the Adirondacks has been mentioned in
connection with the remarks on the pre-Cambrian surface of the Appa¬
lachian province.

When describing the Upper Cambrian sandstones of the Black
Hills of Dakota, Prof. Henry Xewton states that: 3

We may thus, from a study of the Potsdam rocks and their relations, infer with a
high degree of probability that at this early time the Black Hills were already
marked out, and that they stood above the waves of the Potsdam shallow sea, prob¬
ably as a long, low reef or island. This reef was undoubtedly as long as we now
find the exposure of the Archean rocks, and may even have been of greater length,
as we do not know the character of the unexposed Potsdam of the Hills.

Again, the Archean rocks were, in Potsdam time, metamorphosed to nearly or
quite the same extent as now, for the fragments composing the conglomerate are of
the same character as the still unbroken strata of the metamorphic slates and schists.
The slates were also tilted to their present high inclination, for upon their upturned
surfaces the Potsdam rests unconformably, and if any tilting of the metamorphic
rocks had taken place since the deposition of the Potsdam the evidence would be
found in great breakings and fractures in the sedimentary rocks.

At the beginning of the Lower Silurian term we may hence imagine the Black
Hills, and possibly a much more extended region, as an island (“an island” because
the conglomerate is on both sides of the present axis), a reef of schists, quartzites,
slates, and granites, running northwest and southeast. Barren and desolate we may

1 Atlas accompanying report on iron ores and coal fields, Gaol. Survey of Missouri, 1873, PI. la.

2 American Geologist, vol. 3, 1889, p. 8.

3 Geology and Kesources of the Black Hills of Dakota, 1880, p. 105.

SECTION SHOWING DEPOSITION OF POTSDAM SANDSTONE IN WISCONSIN.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XLIV

WALCOTT.]

CONTINENTAL FEATURES - DANA.

557

picture this island, for wo know of no plants nor land animals that then had their
existence. The only moving things that left their record were the waves that rolled
over a broad and shallow sea and broke the silence by dashing against the primor¬
dial land. Slowly but surely they tore and undermined its cliffs and rolled away
the fragments to form the conglomerates and sandstones of another age. The in¬
equalities of the Archean shore became gradually filled up. and as the sea rose
higher upon the land all that was not worn away at last became entirely covered
by the Potsdam Sea and its sediments.

The relations of the Upper Cambrian sediments of Montana, Wyo¬
ming', and Colorado all indicate the same condition of pre- Cambrian sur¬
face as those of Wisconsin and the Black Hills, or, in other words, the
advancing sea found in these areas a more or less irregular surface of
mountain ridges, valleys, and plains very much like that of the present
time. The outward slope of the Cambrian strata from the pre-Cambrian
rocks indicates that the mountain masses have been elevated more or
less on the same bases that they occupied at the beginning of Cambrian
time.

In a note on the pre-Paleozoic surface of the Archean terrane of
Canada Dr. A. C. Lawson sums up the evidence relating to the charac¬
ter of that surface as follows:1 2

Thus, wherever careful observations have been made as to the nature of the super¬
position of the undisturbed Paleozoic rocks upon the Archean, whether in the Lake
Superior country, eastern Ontario, Quebec, or Labrador, the evidence points to the
same conclusion, i. e., that the early Paleozoic rocks were laid down upon a surface
which did not differ essentially from that presented by the exposed Archean surface
of the present day upon which the great Canadian glacier rested, and that there is
no good evidence of that surface having undergone any material reduction in level
in consequence of the conditions of the glacial epoch, either Tty any plowing power,
sometimes ascribed to glacier ice, or by the removal of the products of extensive
rock decay.

CONTINENTAL FEATURES.

DANA.

Extending the range of observation from the minor details of the
surface to the grander topographic features of the continent we find
that Prof. J. D. Dana more definitely characterizes the continental area
at the beginning of Paleozoic time than any other writer. He says :

The revolution closing the Azoic age, the first we distinctly observe in America,
was probably nearly universal over the globe. -

Of the northern nucleus he says :

The earliest spot or primal area will bo that of the Azoic rocks, the first in the
geological series. Such an area (see Chart AAA) extends from northern New York
and Canada northwest to the Arctic Ocean, lying between the line of small lakes
Slave, Winnipeg, etc.,) and Hudson Bay. East and west it dips under Silurian
strata (S S), but it is itself free from superincumbent beds, and therefore, oven in
the Silurian age, it must have been above the ocean. And ever since, although sub¬
ject, like the rest of the world, to great oscillations, it has apparently held its place
with wonderful stability, for it is now, as probably then, not far above the ocean’s
level.

1 Bulletin, Geological Society of America, 1890, vol. 1, p. 169.

2 On Am. Geol. Hist., Am. Jour. Sci. 2d ser., 1856, vol. 22, p. 380.

558

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

This area is central to the continent, and, what is of prominent interest, it lies par¬
allel to the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific border, thus proving that the greater
force came from that direction in Azoic times as well as when the Rocky Mountains
were raised. Thus this first land, the germ or nucleus of the future continent, bears
iu itself evidence with respect to the direction and strength of the forces at work.
The force coming from the Atlantic direction has left comparatively small traces of
its action at that time. Yet it has made its mark in the Azoic, stretching through
Canada to Labrador, in the dip and strike of the New York Azoic rocks in the direc¬
tion of the channel of the St. Lawrence and the northwest coast of Lake Superior,
and probably also in the triangular form of Hudson Bay. Against this primal area,
as a standpoint, the uplifting agency operated, acting from the two directions — the
Atlantic and the Pacific, and the evolution of the continent took place through the
consequent vibrations of the crust, and the additions to this area thereby resulting,
the ocean in the meantime pursuing its appointed functions in the plan of develop¬
ment by wearing exposed rocks and strewing the shores and submerged surface with
sand, gravel, or clay, or else growing shells, corals, and crinoids, and thus storing
up the material of strata and burying the life of successive epochs.1

Through these means the continent which was begun at the far North, a region
then tropical but afterwards to become inhospitable, gradually expanded southward,
area after area as time moved on being added to the dry land.2

The Appalachian range of heights, as I explained a year since, was commenced in
the Silurian age, and even earlier, long before a trace of the mountains had appeared.
The force from the southeast, in the dawn of the Paleozoic era, had made the Ap¬
palachian region generally shallower than the Mississippi valley beyond. The
vast sandstone and shale deposits of the region bear marks in many parts of sea¬
shore action, Avliile the limestones which were forming contemporaneously farther
west indicate clearer and somewhat deeper seas; and the patch of Azoic in northern
New York, lying at the northern extremity of part of the range, points to an anterior
stage in the same course of history; so that in early time, long before there were
mountains, the future of the continent, its low center and high borders, was fore¬
shadowed. We can hardly doubt that the region of the Rocky Mountains was in
the same condition, in the main, with that of the Appalachians. Moreover, these
borders, or at least the eastern, for ages anterior to the making of the mountains,
were subject to vastly greater oscillations than the interior; for the Silurian and
Devonian sandstones that occur along from New York to Alabama, are of great thick¬
ness, being five times as thick as the limestones and associated deposits of the same
age to the west. A limestone bod, moreover, is of itself evidence of comparatively
little oscillation of level during its progress.

We hence learn that in the evolution of the continental germ, after the appearance
of the Azoic nucleus, there were two prominent lines of development: One along the
Appalachian region, the other along the Rocky Mountain region ; one, therefore,
parallel with either ocean. Landward, beyond each of these developing areas, there
Avas a great trough or channel of deeper ocean Avaters, separating either from the
Azoic area.3

On tlie map accompanying this paper Prof. Dana illustrates his view
of the nucleal V of the continent, hut does not indicate the develop¬
ment at that time above sea level of the Appalachian and Rocky
Mountain ranges. In a later paper on the Appalachian and Rocky
mountains as time boundaries in geological history he4 concludes

1 On the Plan of Development in the Geological History of North America. Am. Jour. Sci., 2d ser.,
1856, vol. 22, pp. 341, 342.

2 Op. cit., p. 343.

3 Op. cit., p. 344.

4 Am. Jour. Sci., 2d ser., 1863, vol. 36, p. 227.

WALCOTT.]

CONTINENTAL FEATURES - DANA.

559

that the Appalachians date from the closing act in Paleozoic history,
and at the introduction of Cenozoic time the mass of the Rocky Mountains
began to rise above the ocean.

With the increase of information Prof. Dana gradually extended his
views, and in 1875 summed them up as follows:1

On the map, p. 149, the striking fact is shown that tho great northern V-shaped
Archean area of tho continent has (1) its longer arm, B B, parallel approximately to
the Rocky Mountain chain and the Pacific border, and (2) its shorter, C C, parallel
to the smaller Appalachian chain and the Atlantic border. Further, of the other
ranges of Archean lands (1) there is one near the Atlantic border in Newfoundland,
Nova Scotia, and New England; (2) another along the eastern side of tho Appalach¬
ian chain ; (3) two or more of great length along the Rocky Mountain chain, and (4)
others, not included in the above, lie in ranges parallel to these main courses. More¬
over, the Archean rocks of these regions were upturned and crystallized before the
Silurian age and probably at two or more different epochs, and some, if not all, were
thus early raised into ridges, standing not far below the water’s surface, if not
above it.

Hence, in the very inception of the continent not only was its general topography
foreshadowed, but its main mountain chains appear to have been begun and its great
intermediate basins to have been defined — the basin of New England and New Bruns¬
wick on the east; that between the Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains over the
great interior; that of Hudson Bay between the arms of the northern V- The evo¬
lution of the grand structure lines of the continent Avas hence early commenced, and
the system thus initiated was the system to the end. Here is one strong reason for
concluding that the continents have always been continents; that, while portions
may have at times been submerged some thousands of feet, the continents have never
changed places with the oceans. Tracing out the development of the American con¬
tinent from these Archean beginnings is one of the main purposes of geological his¬
tory.

Iii conformity with the broad structural features, the continental area
was divided off into the following regions:

1. The Eastern Border basin or region , east and northeast of the Green
Mountain range, including Hew England, eastern Canada, Hew Bruns¬
wick, western Hova Scotia, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and Hewfoundland.

2. The Appalachian region , along the course of the Appalachians,
through the Green Mountains, to the vicinity of Quebec.

3. The Interior Continental basin , between the Appalachians (with the
Green Mountains, properly the northern part of them) and the Rocky
Mountain chain.

4. The Western Border basin , west of the Rocky Mountain summit.

A great Arctic border and a Rocky Mountain region may hereafter

be recognized, but the facts thus far collected do not at present make
it necessary to refer separately to them.2

In a still more recent paper Prof. Dana says, when summing up his
study :

It is of the highest interest to find, in such a review of events marking oft' the
growth of the continent, that the grander lineaments were well defined and the
grander movements initiated in its early beginning. Surely there can be no mistake

1 Manual of Geology, 2d edition, 1876, pp. 160, 161.

2 Op. cit., p. 146.

5 GO

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

in the conclusion that the continent has ever been a unit in its system and laws of
development, or the wider conclusion that .all the continents “have had their laws
of growth, involving consequent features, as much as organic structures.” (Expl.
Exped., 4to; Report, p. 436, 1849. )l

Iii a subsequent paper on the Archean axis of eastern North America
lie describes the ranges partly or wholly Archean lying east of the
Appalachian protaxial range as follows :

THE RANGES.

The ranges, partly or wholly Archean, lying to the east of the Protaxial Range are
the following — numbering the protaxis I, as it is the first in the series:

II. The New Hampshire Range, extending from the borders of Maine and Canada
through New Hampshire and Massachusetts into Connecticut, making the east side
of the Connecticut Valley.

III. The Mount Desert Range, commencing near Chaleur Bay, on the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, and continued south westward through New Brunswick to the coast of
Maine, where it includes the Mount Desert region, and thence into eastern Mas¬
sachusetts between Boston and Worcester, and probably into Connecticut.

IV. The Acadian Range, commencing in the western part of northern Newfound¬
land, east of White Bay, and extending thence to St. George Bay, and Cape Ray, in
the southwestern, and beyond over eastern Nova Scotia; and thence, probably,
beneath the sea along the course of shallow soundings, as sustained by Prof. W. 0.
Crosby, to Plymouth and Cape Cod, in eastern Massachusetts.

The Archean ridge of the long northwestern arm of Newfoundland, north of the
Bay of Islands, making the northern part of the so-called “Long Range,” is a more
western range than the preceding; it is separated from the Archean region of
Labrador by the Belleisle Strait or Channel.

V. The Central Newfoundland Range, extending over a broad region east of the
Exploits River Valley to the east side of Exploits Bay.

Besides these ranges there appear to he two other more or less complete ranges
separating pairs of hays that head together, and then, the easternmost, that of Ferry-
land.2

Of the valleys or troughs occurring between these ranges he says :

The troughs into which the country is topographically divided by these ranges
were the rock-making troughs or basins of Paleozoic time, and partly of Mesozoic,
and were more or less independent in their geological history, especially after the
Lower Silurian era. The Lower Silurian and Cambrian beds often spread from one
of these troughs to another, and across the protaxis, over portions that were then
submerged.3

He thus sums up the results of this and his previous paper :

The facts illustrate strikingly the great truth that the earth’s features even to
many minor details were defined in Archean time, and consequently that Archean
conditions exercised a special and even detailed control over future continental
growth. The extension of North America to the most eastern point of Newfound¬
land, and beyond it, was determined in this beginning time, and likewise that of the
European continent to the Hebrides, in front of the Scandinavian Archean area.4

1 Areas of continental progress in North America and the influence of the conditions of these areas
on the work carried forward within them. Bulletin Geol. Soc. Am., 1889, vol. 1, p. 48.

2 Archean Axis of Eastern Northern America. Am. Jour. Sci., 3d ser., 1890, vol. 39, pp. 379, 380.

3 Op cit , p. 380.

4 Op. cit., p. 383.

WALCOTT.]

CONTINENTAL FEATURES - CHAMBERLIN.

561

Mr. G. K. Gilbert’s observations on the great pre-Paleozoie strati¬
graphic break have been quoted (ante, p. 551). At the time of making
them lie did not recognize the great troughs on the eastern and west¬
ern sides of the continent in which some of the sediments of late Algon-
kian time appear to have been deposited.

CHAMBERLIN.

When making observations upon the pre- Laurentian history of the
North American continent Prof. T. C. Chamberlin described the loca¬
tion of the primitive land as follows:1

Precisely what was the location of the primitive land we do not know, for there is
as yet no clear proof that the earliest sediments which we have studied were the
earliest formed, while it is almost certain that the earliest lands which we can map
did not constitute the primitive continent. But it is highly probable that the earli¬
est known sediments were near those actually first formed and hence near the first
land. The tenor of geological evidence is to the effect that the land has been essen¬
tially constant in position from the beginning, and it is a well-known fact that the
greater part of oceanic sediments accumulate near the land whence the material is
derived.

Of the earliest known land lie says :

Now, the earliest known land in our quarter of the globe consists of a great V-
shaped or U-shaped area occupying the northern part of our present continent, em¬
bracing Hudson Bay between its great arms and resting its point on the great lake
region. From the latter one broad belt stretches northwesterly to the Arctic sea
and another northeasterly to the coast of Labrador. South of Lake Superior there
arose an island which will become to us an object of especial interest, since around
it gathered the formations which at length produced the substructure of our State.

There probably existed at the same time a long island parallel and adjacent to the
present Atlantic coast, which became the basis of growth in the Appalachian region.
Although our knowledge of the Archaean geology of the mountain belt of the West
is limited, sufficient is known to warrant the statement that there were elongated
areas or lines of islands along its axis that became the germs of growth of the west¬
ern border lands.

Within these greater ranges scattered islands or archapelagoes seem to have ap¬
peared, the remnants of which are now found in Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas, In¬
dian Territory, Texas, and the Adirondack region of New York. The last, however,
may have been a peninsula. All these areas were doubtless really more extensive
than the present mapping, based on their worn remnants, indicates. Some of them
may, however, be due to subsequent elevation.

In a generalized view it may be said that there was a V-shaped area in the north¬
ern part of the continent, flanked on the southeast and southwest at moderate dis¬
tances by linear belts, parallel respectively to the arms of the V, leaving between
them a Y-shaped sea.'2

A map entitled u Approximate map of Laurentian land in North Amer¬
ica” accompanies these illustrations and defines the author’s view of the
extent of the Laurentian land areas prior to the deposition of the great
intermediate series of rocks which are now classified under the Algon-
kian system.

'Geology of Wisconsin, vol. 1, 1883, p. 61.
2 Ibid., pp. 61 62.

■36

12 GEOL

562

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

WALCOTT.

My own work on the Cambrian formations and the subjacent comforma-
ble series beneath them in the Appalachian and Rocky Mountain areas
lias led me to consider that the prevailing view of the geographic distribu¬
tion and extent of the continental area at the beginning of Paleozoic time
is too restricted. If the interpretation, as represented on PL xliii, be
correct, the continent was larger at the beginning of the Cambrian period
than during any epoch of Paleozoic time, and probably not until the de¬
velopment of the great fresh- water lakes of the Lower Mesozoic was there
such a broad expanse of land upon the continental platform between
the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The agencies of erosion were wearing
away the surface of this Algonkian continent and its outlying mountain
barriers, to the eastward and westward, when the epoch of the Lower
Cambrian or Olenellus zone began. The continent was not then new.
On the contrary, it was approaching the base level of erosion over large
portions of its surface. The present Appalachian system of mountains
was outlined by a high and broad range, or system of ranges, that ex¬
tended from the present site of Alabama to Canada, and subparallel
ranges formed the margins of basins and straits to the east and north¬
east of the northern Paleo- Appalachians or the Paleo-Green Mountains,
and their northern extension toward the pre-Cambrian shore line of
Labrador. The Paleo- Adirondacks joined the main portion of the con¬
tinent, and the strait between tlibm and the Paleo-Green Mountains
opened to the north into the Paleo-St. Lawrence Gulf, and to the south
extended far along the western side of the mountains and the eastern
margin of the continental mass to the sea that carried the fauna of the
Olenellus epoch around to the Paleo-Rocky Mountain trough.

On the Pacific side the eastern mass of the Paleo-Rocky Mountains
rose as a broad mountain barrier upon the western side of the continen¬
tal area, from the present sites of Arizona and New Mexico to Montana,
'where a strait or sea opened across the range to an interior sea that ex¬
tended north on the eastern side of the mountains towards the Arctic
Circle. To the west the primitive Sierra Nevada protected the Nevada
sea, in which the life of early Cambrian time was spreading.

The continent was well outlined at the beginning of Cambrian time;
and I strongly suspect, from the distribution of the Cambrian faunas
upon the Atlantic coast, that ridges and barriers of the Algonkian con¬
tinent rose above the sea, within the boundary of the continental
plateau, that are now buried beneath the waters of the Atlantic. On
the east and west of the continental area the pre-Cambrian land formed
the mountain region, and over the interior a plateau existed that at the
beginning of, or a little before, Upper Cambrian time was much as it is
to-day. Subsequent mountain building has added to the bordering
mountain ranges, but 1 doubt if the present ranges are as great as those
of pre-Cambrian time that are now known only by more or less of their
truncated bases. The Interior Continental area was outlined then and

WALCOTT.]

MIDDLE CAMBRIAN LAND.

563

it has not changed materially since. Its foundations were built in
Algonkian time on the Archean basement, and an immense period of
continent growth and erosion elapsed before the first sand of Cambrian
time was settled in its bed above them.

I f these conclusions are correct, it is evident that the continental area
and the deep seas (Atlantic and Pacific) have retained their relative
positions since the beginning of Algonkian time. There is certainly no
evidence to show that since the beginning of Paleozoic time the con¬
tinent has ever formed the bottom of a great oceanic basin, or that the
beds of the deeper seas have been elevated above the surface of the
water, and this is probably true since the contours of the continental
plateau were first marked off. The indications are that the oceans have
grown deeper and the continents broader since the first beginning of
the land areas that formed the nuclei of the continent. If this be true,
the continent has grown by the extravasation and deposition of vol¬
canic rocks and by the tendency of the earth’s crust to consolidate in
some areas and push the surrounding matter up into continental masses.
The scope of this paper and the range of the author’s studies do uot
permit of a discussion of the theory. The continent is considered at the
inception of Cambrian time, and its history traced in a broad manner
to the closing epoch of the period.

In the first section (ante, p. 532), on the deposition of sediments now
forming the Cambrian group of rocks and their relation to pre-Cambrian
and post-Cambrian formations, the evidence is mentioned upon which
the pre-Cambrian form of the continent is outlined. On the section at
the base of PI. xlii the presence of deep troughs westward of the Appa¬
lachian Archean protaxis and the Rocky Mountain prptaxis is distinctly
shown ; also that during the deposition of the Lower and Middle Cam¬
brian a great plateau existed between the Appalachian and Rocky
Mountain regions. The section over the interior continental plateau
indicates that perhaps with one exception, that of the central Texas
section, only sediments of Upper and closing Middle Cambrian age
were deposited. The view that such Cambrian sediments were deposited
during the transgression of the sea across the interior is supported by
the fact that the rocks are largely composed of sand and mechanical
sediments such as would be deposited by an advancing sea. In the
deeper water areas of the Appalachian and Rocky Mountain troughs
the corresponding horizon is represented by calcareous shales and lime¬
stones, with the exception of where it is in the immediate vicinity of
the shore line, or within the area of currents that carried fine sediment
farther out from the shore.

MIDDLE CAMBRIAN LAND.

There is little definite data for the construction of a map of the con¬
tinent during Middle Cambrian time. The narrowing of the land areas
that existed at the beginning of Cambrian time, and the probable pres¬
ence of a barrier between the Atlantic coast and Appalachian provinces

564

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

appears to be all the changes recorded. The latter is supposed to have
prevented the Paradoxides fauna of the Atlantic coast province from
penetrating into the Appalachian trough, either to the north in the St.
Lawrence and Champlain valleys or along the line of the southern Paleo-
Appalachians. The possible exception to this is in the southern limit in
Alabama, where a few types of Paradoxides fauna of Newfoundland and
Sweden occur in association with the characteristic Middle Cambrian
fauna of the Appalachian and Rocky Mountain provinces. The pres¬
ence of this fauna indicates that there was a line of communication
between the North Atlantic province and the southern portion of the
Appalachian trough, to the eastward of the Paleo- Appalachian barrier,
during Middle Cambrian time.

Owing to the fact that the Middle Cambrian zone is differentiated
from the Lower and Upper in the great Paleo- Appalachian and Paleo-
Eocky Mountain troughs, and that its upper zone occurs in the Interior
Continental area, a map of these provinces from existing data would
show a deep contraction of the margins of the central area and a slight
narrowing of the bordering ridges.

During the held season of 1891 I had the opportunity of examining
sections of the Cambrian rocks in Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, and
Alabama. Special attention was given to the middle zone, as the data
upon it was limited to the one fact that the Middle Cambrian fauna
was known to occur in the Coosa Valley of Georgia and Alabama.
At the Balcony Falls section of Virginia the Olenellus fauna was found
just above the upper massive Scolithus quartzite, and the zone of the
Middle Cambrian was limited to the relatively thin belt of ferriferous
shales, if the discovery of the Upper Cambrian fauna in the yellowish
shales just beneath the limestones proves correct.1 No fossils were
found in the Doe River and Nulicliucky River sections of Tennessee,
but they are interpreted by the Balcony Falls section. In each there is
a great thickness of Lower Cambrian sediments, and only a few hun¬
dred feet of strata that are referred to the Middle and Upper Cambrian.

The data for the interpretation of the physical conditions of the
Paleo- Appalachian trough during Middle Cambrian time was obtained
in southeastern Tennessee, and northwestern Georgia. It shows that
the barrier that closed the Appalachian sea to the fauna of the Atlantic
coast province was a shallowing of the interior sea, and that very little,
if any, deposition of sediment occurred until well into Middle Cambrian
time. The Knox sandstone of Salford is well developed in the vicinity
of Cleveland, Tennessee. It is superjacent to a considerable thickness
of variegated shales and thin sandstones, that are capped by a massive
siliceous limestone. The Olenellus fauna was found in the shales and
in the base of the sandstones above the limestone. In the middle and
upper portion of the sandstones the fauna is characteristic of the cen¬
tral zone of the Middle Cambrian fauna as it occurs in Dutchess County,

'For a description of the Balcony Falls section see Bull. U. S. Geological Survey, No. 81, 1891, pp.
293-298

WALCOTT.]

POST-CAMBRTAN LAND.

565

New York, Antelope Springs, Utah, and near Pioclie, Nevada. Fifty
miles southward, in the Coosa Valley of Georgia and Alabama, the Rome
sandstone carries the fauna characteristic of the central zone of the
Middle Cambrian, but not the Olenellus fauna. A series of arenaceous,
calcareous, and argillaceous shales and thinly bedded rocks, over 2,000
feet in thickness, come in beneath the sandstone that are not repre¬
sented in Tennessee, and, farther north, they contain a strongly marked
Middle Cambrian fauna, a portion of which is identical with that of the
Paradoxides fauna of the Atlantic Basin, Newfoundland, Sweden, etc.
Applying these facts to the interpretation of the physical conditions of
the Appalachian province during Middle Cambrian time, the following
conclusions are reached :

1. Most of the Paleo- Appalachian sea became very shallow and was
practically an area of very slight or no deposition of sediments from
the close of the Olenellus zone until the middle part of Middle Cam¬
brian time.

2. In the southern portion of the sea sedimentation went on as in the
Paleo-Rocky Mountain sea, and accumulated the Coosa and Hoodoo
shales.

3. Toward the close of the early part of Middle Cambrian time the
Paleo- Appalachian trough began to deepen and to receive deposits of
sand and clays, in which the later Middle Cambrian fauna was imbedded.

4. The continental depression that brought about the extension of the
Upper Cambrian sea over the great interior of the continent began
toward the close of Middle Cambrian time, as shown by the deepening
of the Paleo-Appalachian trough and the presence of the upper phase of
the Middle Cambrian fauna in the basal Cambrian sandstones of the
Grand Canyon district of Arizona, and of Texas and Wisconsin.

5. The deepening of the Appalachian trough ceased, except at its
southern end, during a considerable portion of late Cambrian time.

G. In the Paleo- St. Lawrence region the conglomerates of Lower
Cambrian limestone were formed during the movement that deepened
the more southern portion of the Paleo-Appalachian trough.1

POST-CAMBRIAN LAND.

At the close of Cambrian time and the beginning of Lower Silurian
(Ordovician) time a greater change had taken place, owing to the
extension of the Upper Cambrian sea over the broad interior of the
continent and the submergence of all the low ground along the line of
the barrier ridges and some portions of the great northern nucleal V
of the Archean continent. The distribution of the Upper Cambrian
and the Lower Ordovician fauna indicate free intercommunication
between all the seas with the exception of the Atlantic coast front and
the interior. Here a barrier appears to have existed which prevented
the life of the Atlantic basin from penetrating into the interior seas of

1 A full discussion of this subject will he published in a memoir on the Middle Cambrian rocks and
faunas.

5G6

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

the Paleo-St. Lawrence and Paleo- Appalachian region. Within that
barrier the same types and species of marine animals range from the
Paleo-St. Lawrence Valley to British Columbia along the northern front
south along the Paleo- Appalachians and Paleo-Rocky mountains, and on
the shores of the islands of Wisconsin, Dakota, Missouri, and Texas.
It is known that the gradually sinking continent soon depressed the
barrier of the Atlantic side beneath the sea, and that by middle Lower
Silurian (Ordovician) time the ocean had transgressed far upon the
crystalline rocks of the nucleal V and deposited the sediments of the
Trenton epoch over and beyond the ancient Cambrian shore line and
overlapped far to the north in Labrador, toward Hudson Bay and
among the islands of the arctic region.

It is to be noticed that the sediments following those of the Upper
Cambrian are largely calcareous. Over the areas of the Paleo- Appa¬
lachian and Paleo-Rocky Mountain seas this is almost universal, and
over the broad interior continental area the closing sands of the Cam¬
brian time are mingled with the calcareous sediments of the opening
Lower Silurian (Ordovician). This fact has been so well brought out
by Prof. Dana in his Manual of Geology that it is unnecessary at the
present time to repeat the evidence. There is, however, the fact to
be noticed that the accumulation of calcareous sediments in the Appa¬
lachian and Rocky Mountain troughs during the earlier portion of
Lower Silurian (Ordovician) time, was far greater than over the Inte¬
rior Continental area. This indicates a greater depression of the
troughs than for the interior continental surface and lends a little
support to the theory of Prof. James Hall (as expressed in the intro¬
duction of the third volume of the Paleontology of New York) that the
accumulation of sediments caused the greater depression on the line of
the Appalachians. With the view, however, that the troughs were
formed by the contraction of the borders of the continental mass, and
that the sediments accumulated to a great thickness in them owing to
the favorable conditions for their deposition, the theory of Hall is not
sustained.

DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XLV.

Hypothetical map of the North American continent at the beginning
of Lower Silurian (Ordovician) time.

This map is based upon our present knowledge of the distribution of
the sediments of the closing epoch of Cambrian time. The space with
the horizontal ruling represents the supposed land areas and the white
spaces within the boundary of the continental plateau the sea, or un¬
known land areas of which we have not any record.

The large islands are: A. = Adirondack, W.= Wisconsin, B. H.=
Black Hills, M.=Missouri, and T.=Texas. The Paleo-Rocky Moun¬
tains are broken into short ranges, while the primitive Sierra Nevada
(S. N.) is left unbroken. The Paleo- Appalachians and the eastern bor¬
der are represented very much as on PI. xliii.

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

tWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. *LV

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

WALCOTT. )

CONCLUSIONS.

567

CONCLUSIONS.

1. The pre-Cambrian Algonkian continent was formed of the crystal¬
line rocks of the Archean nuclei, and broad areas of superjacent Algon¬
kian rocks that were more or less disturbed and extensively eroded in
pre-Cambrian time. Its area was larger than at any succeeding epoch
until Mesozoic time. (See PI. xliii, p. 546.)

2. On the east the Paleo-Appalachian system of mountains was out¬
lined by a high and broad range, or system of ranges, that extended
from the present site of Alabama to Canada, and subparallel ranges
that formed the margins of seas and straits to the east and northeast of
the northern Paleo-Appalachiaus or the Paleo-Green Mountains and
their northeastern extension toward the pre-Cambrian shore line of
Labrador.

3. On the Pacific side the eastern mass of the Paleo-Rocky Mountains
formed a broad mountain barrier that extended from the present region
of Arizona and New Mexico to Montana, and toward the Arctic circle,
upon the western side of an interior continental land area. To the west
the primitive Sierra Nevada protected the Nevada sea and extended
far to the north.

4. The interior continental area was, at the beginning of Cambrian
time, an elevated, broad, relatively level plateau between the Paleo-Ap¬
palachian sea on the east, and the Paleo-ltocky Mountain barrier on the
west. (See PI. xliii and sections at the bottom of PL xlii.)

5. At the beginning of Cambrian time three principal areas of sedi¬
mentation existed : (a) The Atlantic coast province, including various
narrow seas between the several pre-Cambrian ridges; ( b ) a narrow sea
extending along the western side of the Paleo-Appalachian range from
the present site of Labrador to Alabama ; (c) a broader sea on the west¬
ern side of the continent, west of the eastern Paleo-Rocky Mountain
ranges that extended from the southern portion of the present site of
Nevada northward iuto British Columbia and probably toward the
Arctic circle, and south to the Paleo-Gulf of Mexico and thus connecting
with the Paleo-Appalachian Sea.

6. Sedimentation probably began in the Paleo-Appalachian and Paleo-
Rocky Mountain seas before Cambrian time, and it continued without
any known unconformity to the close of Lower Silurian (Ordovician)
time in the northern Paleo-Appalachian sea, and with relatively little
interruption to the close of Paleozoic time in the Paleo-Appalachian sea
south of New York, and in the Paleo-Rocky Mountain sea.

7. The Cambrian sea began to invade the great Interior Continental
area in late Middle Cambrian time, and extended far to the north toward
the close of the period, as indicated on Pl. xlv.

8. The depression of the continent in relation to sea level began in
pre-Cambrian time and continued with a few interruptions until the
close of Paleozoic time.

NORTH AMERICA DURING CAMBRIAN TIME.

568

9. The relative positions of the continental area and the deep seas
have not changed since Algonkian time.

10. The sediments of Cambrian time were accumulated to a great ex¬
tent in approximately shallow seas except in. portions of the Paleo-Rocky
Mountain and Paleo- Appalachian seas.

11. The Lower Cambrian fauna lived in the seas of the Atlantic coast
province, the P al eo - Appalachi an , and the Paleo-Rocky Mountain seas.

12. The Middle Cambrian fauna of the Atlantic basin is not known
to have penetrated into the Paleo- Appalachian or Paleo-Rocky Mountain
seas, except in the case of a few species now found in Alabama and
probably eastern New York. The portion of the fauna occupying the
same relative stratigrapic position in the group is essentially the same
in the Paleo- Appalachian and Paleo-Rocky Mountain sections.

13. The Upper Cambrian fauna was distributed over the broad Inte¬
rior Continental area and in the Paleo- Appalachian and Paleo-Rocky
Mountain seas, but it has not been recognized by the same genera and
species in the Atlantic coast province, the fauna of the latter being more
closely allied to that of the Upper Cambrian of the eastern side of the
Atlantic basin.

THE ERUPTIVE ROCKS

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN,
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK.

JOSEPH PAXSON IDDINGS.

CONTENTS.

Page,

Introduction . 577

Geological sketch of the region . 578

Electric Peak . 579

Geological description . 579

Geological map . 581

The eruptive rocks of Electric Peak . 582

Use of the terms porphyrite and porphyry . 582

Sheet rocks . 584

Dike and stock rocks . 586

The dike rocks and certain contact facies of the stock . 588

The stock rocks and apophyses . 595

Intergrowth of hornblende and pyroxene in glassy rocks . 610

Quartz-mica-diorite-porphyrite . 617

General consideration of the mineral and chemical composition of

the rocks . 619

Sepulchre Mountain . 633

Geological description . 633

The volcanic rocks of Sepulchre Mountain . 634

The lower breccia . 634

The upper breccia . 635

The dike rocks . 640

General consideration of the mineral and chemical composition of the

rocks . 647

Comparison of the rocks from the two localities . 650

Correlation of the rocks on a chemical basis . 652

Effect of mineralizing agents . 658

Application to the classification of igneous rocks . 660

Appendix . 664

571

■

ILLUSTRATIONS.

Page.

Plate XLVI. Electric Peak from Sepulchre Mountain . 580

XL VII. Head of East Gulch of Electric Peak . 582

XLVIII. Fig. 1. Diorite (coarse grain) . 596

Fig. 2. Diorite (medium grain) . 596

XLIX. Fig. 1. Granite (fine grain) . 598

Fig. 2. Quartz-mica-diorite-porpliyrite . 598

L. Intergrowths of minerals in the diorite . 606

LI. Intergrowths of minerals in glassy rocks and quartz plieno-

crysts . 612

LII. Sepulchre Mountain from its northwest spur . 634

LIII. Geological map of the region . 664

Fig. 79. Variation in silica percentages . 627

80. Diagram showing molecular variation of the rocks at Electric Peak. . 629

81. Diagram showing molecular variation of rocks at Sepulchre Moun¬

tain . 649

573

TABLES.

Page.

Table I. Mineral variation of the porphyrites at Electric Peak . 588

II. Minei'al variation of the diorites and their facies at Electric Peak . . 596

III. Mineral variation of the dike rocks at Electric Peak . 619

IV. Grades of crystallization of the dike rocks at Electric Peak . 620

V. Mineral variation of rocks of subgroup Ila . 622

VI. Miueral variation of rocks of subgroup life . 622

VII. Mineral variation of rocks of subgroup lie . 623

VIII. Grades of crystallization of the stock rocks . 625

IX. Chemical analyses of the rocks of Electric Peak . 627

X. Silica percentages of the rocks of Electric Peak . 627

XI. Molecular variation of the essential minerals of the diorite . 631

XII. Mineral variation of the upper breccias of Sepulchre Mountain . 635

XIII. Mineral variation of the dike rocks of Sepulchre Mountain . 640, 641

XIV. Grades of crystallization of the rocks of Sepulchre Mountain . 645

XV. Chemical analyses of the rocks of Sepulchre Mountain . 648

XVI. Order of eruption of the rocks at Electric Peak and Sepulchre

Mountain . 651

XVII. Correlation of the rocks on a chemical basis . 654

XVIII. Grades of crystallization of all of the rocks . 655

XIX. Original specimen uumbers corresponding to those used in this

paper . 664

575

THE ERUPTIVE ROCKS OF ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN,

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK.

By Joseph Paxson Iddings.

INTRODUCTION.

For the student of igneous or eruptive rocks there is no question
which excites greater interest, and the correct answer to which would
be of greater importance, than that involving the relation or connec¬
tion between the various forms and kinds of coarse grained rocks and
the different varieties of glassy ones. Any group of observations,
therefore, that bears upon this problem should be studied with the
greatest care, in order that we may learn how far it contributes to our
understanding of these intricate relations, which not only lie at the
foundation of any system of classification of igneous rocks, but which
must affect our comprehension of the real nature of the rocks them¬
selves.

The observations recorded in the following pages appear to contribute
so largely to certain phases of the problem that it is hoped they may
be presented in such a manner that the reader will be able to judge
whether the conclusions arrived at by the writer are sufficiently well
founded.

This study forms a jiart of the work undertaken by the division of
the U. S. Geological Survey under the charge of Mr. Arnold Hague,
which has been investigating the region of the Yellowstone National
Park. It constitutes a chapter of the contributions which are being
made from time to time to the knowledge of this highly attractive
region, where the character of the country is so diversified that the
student is confronted by nearly every phase of geology, among the
most prominent of which are the phenomena of volcanic action, includ¬
ing the distribution and character of the volcanic material, the physics
and chemistry of the thermal springs, and the dynamics of erosion and
glaciation — problems which are being investigated by different members
of the division. The present paper deals with a group of eruptive
rocks occurring at Electric Peak and Sepulchre Mountain, which has
been studied with special care because of the bearing of the results
upon the general petrological question already stated.

12 GrEOL - 37

577

578

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

The eruptive rocks of Electric Peak and vicinity embrace a group of
intrusive rocks that occur in the form of a stock with apophyses, break¬
ing up through Cretaceous strata, which had already been penetrated
by horizontal sheets of intrusive rocks from a neighboring center of
eruption. They also include a group of extrusive or volcanic rocks,
lying east of Electric Peak, which form the mass of Sepulchre Moun¬
tain and contain certain intruded bodies.

The object of the present paper is to describe the nature and occur¬
rence of these intrusive and extrusive bodies and to trace the geological
and lithological connections between them, and to show the develop¬
ment of crystallization and the resulting mineral constitution of mag¬
mas of similar chemical composition which have solidified under a
variety of physical conditions.

GEOLOGICAL SKETCH OF THE REGION.

In order to obtain a clear idea of the geological relations between the
various groups of eruptive rocks coming within the scope of this paper,
it will be necessary to sketch briefly the leading features of the geology
of the region ; the more so since the connection between the intrusive
and extrusive bodies must be traced across a profound fault, which has
affected a large area, and has permitted subsequent erosion to expose
deeply seated intruded bodies by the side of contemporaneous surface
extrusions.

Electric Peak, 11,100 feet in altitude, lies on the northern boundary
of the Yellowstone National Park, 10 miles from its western line. It is
the highest point of that portion of the Gallatin Mountains situated
within the Park limits. These mountains have been carved out of a
block of sedimentary strata composed of limestones, shales, and sand¬
stones of Paleozoic and Mesozoic age, which range from Cambrian to
Cretaceous. This block, about 14 miles wide, at present occupies the
trough between two great bodies of Arcliean rocks, and trends north¬
west and southeast. It has been subjected to a succession of dynamical
forces, which have bent it into a general synclinal fold, the axis of which
lies near the northern body of Arcliean, and trends northwest and south¬
east. They have also produced a number of smaller transverse folds
and faults with a nearly north-northeast and south-southwest trend.

The general synclinal movement was accompanied by a series of intru¬
sions of igneous rocks, which found their way between the sedimentary
strata, wherever the fissile character of the beds presented planes of
least resistance to the dynamical forces engaged in bending them.
These intruded masses formed immense laccolites and thinner sheets,
that penetrate the more fissile strata for miles, with only occasional
changes of horizon.

One large body of eruptive rock is located about 4 miles southwest
of Electric Peak, and appears to have been the source of a great num¬
ber of the sheets, which are intercalated between the Cretaceous shales

IDDINGS.]

GENERAL SKETCH OF THE REGION.

579

and sandstones of this mountain. As a result of the main synclinal
movement the strata at Electric Peak have a general dip toward the
northeast.

After the intrusion of the eruptive sheets a more local synclinal break
occurred in the neighborhood of what is now Electric Peak, its axis
trending northeast and southwest. The southeastern side of the frac¬
tured mass suffered the greater displacement, the strata being turned
up vertically in some places. This break produced one or more large
fissures and numerous smaller crevices, along which igneous rock was
again forced through the shales and sandstones, in the form of a stock
and dikes. The stock is located near the axis of the break, and the
dikes, which are mostly vertical, branch out into the sedimentary beds
for a short distance, and cut across the intruded sheets or cut between
them where they had been previously turned up on end.

The igneous magmas which accompanied the convulsive movements
of the ruptured strata and forced their way between them to cool as in¬
trusive bodies, also reached the surface of the earth in places and took
the form of extrusive masses. The ejected rocks were probably erupted
from a number of different vents whose position was governed by the
nature and extent of the fissures in the sedimentary rocks. They
poured out as flows or massive eruptions and were subsequently blown
to pieces and thrown into breccias and were occasionally cut by dikes.
They undoubtedly formed very extensive bodies of volcanic ejectamenta
which covered a large area of country.

After the intrusion of the stock and dikes just mentioned, and after
the accumulation of the volcanic breccias, the region was broken by
great faults. These faults trend nearly north and south and have
caused great changes in the relative vertical position of the severed
rocks, so that, after extensive erosion, deep-seated strata and intrusive
bodies of erupted rocks are now exposed by the side of extravasated
surface lavas.

The great erosion which carved the faulted blocks into the steep
mountains and valleys of the Gallatin Range was followed by the
eruption of the vast flows of rhyolite and less abundant basalt that
form the plateau country to the south, since which time glaciation
and erosion have still further modified the contour of the country.

ELECTRIC PEAK.

GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.

The form and character of Electric Peak may be seen from the accom¬
panying map and illustrations. The peak constitutes the highest point
on the mountain ridge that stretches from Cinnabar Mountain to Mount
Holmes. It is not an isolated mass, but is the most prominent portion
of a range of mountains which present a continuous series of sedimen¬
tary strata. For the purposes of the present paper it will not be nec-

580

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

essary to explain more of its geology than may be included in the state¬
ment that the mass of the mountain from the streams which bound it
on the south and west is made up of Cretaceous shales and sandstones,
the lower portion being mostly black shale with occasional beds of
sandstone, the upper portion being mostly sandstone with occasional
beds of shale. The south and west slopes of the mountain are largely
shale, and the summit and the top of the northeast spur are sandstone.
These beds pass uninterruptedly into the broad ridge, which is north
of the peak, and are well exposed on the south face of the spur that
lies on the north side of the deep gulch northeast of Electric Peak.
The south face of this spur and the pitch of the strata are shown on the
right-hand side of the panorama of the mountain taken from Sepulchre
Mountain. (PI. xlyi.)

The southeast spur is formed by the upturned beds east of the syn¬
clinal already mentioned. At its extreme southern end the upper portion
of the Carboniferous rocks is exposed, together with the Jura-Trias.
The black shales have been metamorphosed in the vicinity of the main
body of intrusive rocks, and have been indurated to such an extent that
they have withstood erosion sufficiently to form the pyramidal mass of
the southeast spur, which is to the left of the gulcli in the center of
PI. XLVI.

On the south and west erosion has cut down 3,000 feet below the
summit of the mountain, while on the east and northeast it has cut 4,000
and 5,000 feet below the highest point. Two deep gulches penetrate
the very heart of the mass and lay bare its structure. Along the east¬
ern base of the mountain the deeply cut drainage channel of Reese Creek
marks very nearly the line of faulting that separates the rocks of Elec¬
tric Peak from those of Sepulchre Mountain. The fault line passes
across the slope just west of the main creek and up the south branch
of the creek to the divide near Gardiner River.

The character of the western half of the mountain is very different
from that of the eastern, which comprises the eastern summit with the
northeast and southeast spurs. The western and southern slopes are
quite uniformly steep or precipitous exposures of slightly tilted strata
with intercalated sheets of intrusive rocks, or long talus slopes of small
fragments. The eastern summit and spurs, on the other hand, are ir¬
regular in form and present a serrated mass of crags and pinnacles with
precipitous faces of rock hundreds of feet in height. The southern por¬
tion of the southeast spur, however, is more uniformly eroded to smooth
slopes. The northeastern spur is especially rugged, and bristles with
rocky points and needles. These features appear in PI. xlvi.

This difference of character results from the change in the geological
structure of the mountain. The shales and sandstones in the eastern
portion have been highly indurated and altered, and, with the vertical
dikes and stocks that traverse them, have withstood erosion much bet¬
ter than the unaltered strata to the west, and have presented a much
more heterogeneous body, which has yielded very irregularly.

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XLVI

LiBRAKV

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

IDDINOH.]

STRUCTURAL FEATURES.

581

The deep east gulch has cut au amphitheater at the base of the
peak, which rises nearly 1,500 feet vertically above the debris in the
head of the gulch. The walls of this gulch are shown in the pano¬
rama (PI. xlvii) and its general position in the previous view. The
gulch crosses the synclinal break and the main stock of igneous rock,
but the great accumulation of angular debris, which fills the head of
the guicli, obscures the bottom rocks. The central body or stock of
intrusive rocks is located on the northeast spur of the mountain, where
it has broken up into the upper sandstones. It outcrops in a great
number of exposures which cover the southern slope of the spur from
an altitude of 9,000 to 10,000 feet. A large branch stock runs up the
crest of this ridge, forming the line of dark colored pinnacles shown
on the right-hand side of the illustrations. It thins out before reach¬
ing the summit of the mountain. The southwestern end of the main
stock is exposed in the south wall of the amphitheater already men¬
tioned, left-hand end of the view (PI. xlvii). It appears as a high
wedge of crystalline rock reaching to within a few hundred feet of the
top of the cliff, which is the north face of the pyramidal southeast spur.
The crest of this spur, from an altitude of about 10,000 feet up to the
summit of the peak, is serrated by numerous narrow gulches and rocky
points formed by the weathering and erosion of a great number of nar¬
row dikes and upturned intrusive sheets. The dikes are nearly vertical
and are specially abundant along that part of the spur lying between
the wedge of crystalline rock and the break in the sedimentary strata.
They are less numerous as the summit of the peak is approached, and
do not appear to occur farther to the northwest. They do not occur
along the east base of the southeast spur, but extend southward across
the upper slopes of the spur in parallel walls that rise above the shales.
They are hardly to be distinguished from the upturned sheets, which,
however, usually exhibit signs of crushing and displacement. They
are very prominent where the shales are but slightly metamorphosed
and are easily eroded. Toward the more indurated portion of the spur
they are less noticeable and do not rise above the surface of the sur¬
rounding rocks. They become more numerous and larger toward the
north as the area of metamorphism is approached.

The dikes appear to radiate from a center, situated on the northeast
spur, where the main stock is located, and are confined to a range of
about 45° from south to southwest. They are not more than a mile
and a half long.

GEOLOGICAL MAP.

The geological map, PI. liii, exhibits the chief features of the geology
in as simple a manner as possible. Owing to the small scale of the map
and the necessarily limited time devoted to the study of the region, it is
not possible to give more than a general idea of the geological structure
of Electric Peak. Only a small number of the intruded sheets of igne-

582

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

ous rocks can be represented and tlieir thickness has to be exaggerated.
Thus ten sheets are represented instead of fifty, and they are drawn 50
to 150 feet thick, while in actual fact they are from 4 to 30 feet thick.
Moreover, the sheets are continuous, following the bedding of the strata
for long distances, and breaking up toward the north and east into
higher layers which they follow in turn; occasionally the sheets inter¬
sect one another. On the map, however, they are not drawn continu¬
ously, but are interrupted, as there are not sufficient data to carry any
one sheet a very long distance. The same is true of the dikes, which
are more numerous and narrower than they are represented on the map.

The sedimentary rocks are colored according to the period in which
they were deposited, that is, as Carboniferous, Jura-Trias, and Creta-
cous, without attempting to express any further subdivisions. The large
accumulations of morainal debris in the east and northeast gulches are
represented. They are made up of large angular blocks of the sedi¬
mentary and eruptive rocks in which the gulches are located.

That portion of the map which represents the structure of Sepulchre
Mountain will be understood when the geology of this locality is described.

THE ERUPTIVE ROCKS OF ELECTRIC PEAK.

The igneous rocks that form the intruded sheets, and the subsequent
stock and dikes, comprise a number of varieties, having quite an
extended range both of composition and of structure. They include
modifications of diorite and porphyrite, the extreme forms approaching
granite and quartz-porphyry.

Before entering upon the description of these rocks it will be neces¬
sary to explain at some length the writer’s use of the terms porphyrite
and porphyry in order to avoid a possible misunderstanding.

USE OF THE TERMS PORPHYRITE AND PORPHYRY.

The term porphyrite is used throughout this paper for certain struc¬
tural forms of rocks whose essential minerals include the lime-soda-feld¬
spars, while the term porphyry is used for the corresponding structural
forms of rocks characterized by the alkali-feldspars. This is the same
usage as that adopted by Prof. Rosenbusch in his u Mikroskopische
Physiographie der massigen Gesteiue.” Stuttgart, 1886, p. 301. In
limiting the usage of these terms to certain structual forms of igneous
rocks the writer wishes to call attention to the freedom of the terms
from any implication of the age of the rocks. In this respect Prof.
Rosenbusch appears to have fallen into a seeming inconsistency, since
he subsequently confines the terms porphyrite and porphyry to the palco-
volcanic equivalents of the neo volcanic andesites, dacites, rhyolites,
etc. This action can be consistent only on the assumption that the
ancient and modern volcanic rocks in all cases differ from one another
in structure, a supposition which is contrary to our present experience.
With every step in the advancement of our knowledge of the geolog-

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS,

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XLVII

HEAD OF EAST GULCH OF ELECTRIC PEAK,

LiciriAnV
OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS

1DD1NGS.]

PORPHYIilTE AND PORPHYRY.

583

ical occurrence of igneous rocks it becomes more and more evident that
the magmas which were erupted in Paleozoic times crystallized into
rocks which differed in no essential respect from those of recent date,
though in the former instances they have more frequently suffered from
decomposition and other modes of alteration. The apparent greater
preponderance of certain forms of rocks in the earlier periods of the
earth’s history has been correctly referred to the effect of great denuda¬
tion during long ages, and the consequent exposure of those portions
of the solidified magmas that were situated at greater distances from
the surface of the earth. Hence the apparent connection between the
structure of these rocks and their geological age. In proving the
absence of this supposed connection the use of an age qualification in
the definition and classification of igneous rocks has been eliminated,
while the distinctions due to their structure remain unchanged. The
coarse grained forms of rocks that are characterized by labradorite,
augite, and hypersthene, or by labradorite, hornblende, and biotite are
none the less gabbros or diorites because they have crystallized in
Tertiary times or lie incased in basaltic breccias. Neither should we
give up the terms andesite or rhyolite because lavas of their composi¬
tion and texture occur in older geological ages. For similar reasons,
then, we should continue to use the terms porphyrite and porphyry ,
limiting them to certain structural forms, for which they were in most
cases originally employed. In the present paper they are applied to
medium grained porphyritic rocks that occupy an intermediate position
between the coarsely granular diorites and gabbros, and the microlitic
or glassy andesites. This, we think, corresponds the most closely to
their earliest usage.

It is to be further remarked that the terms porphyrite and porphyry
are applied to rocks without reference to their state of preservation,
though, of course, their best types are perfectly fresh, unaltered rocks.
There are abundant instances in which igneous rocks of recent date
exist in a perfectly fresh and unaltered condition, without evidence of
auy change having taken place within them since they crystallized from
a molten state, except occasional surface weathering. Such a set of
rocks are those described in this paper. They present all degrees of
microstructure, from the finest to the coarsest 5 the medium grained
forms are inseparably connected with the glassy lavas on the one hand
and with the coarsely granular rocks on the other. Their crystalliza¬
tion is not the devitrification of previously solidified glass, but is the
crystallization of a heated fluid magma. It is in this sense primary. It
is a fair presumption that the majority of magmas that have crystal¬
lized into an association of silicate minerals retain their original struc¬
tural character for a very great length of time, geologically speaking,
unless subjected to dynamical or chemical processes which rearrange
their mineral constituents more or less completely. Where this has
taken place there are usually evidences of the fact, either within the

584 ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

rock itself or in those surrounding it. Instances of the devitrification
of solidified glasses are abundant and have been ably studied and in¬
terpreted, especially by the English petrographers. It seems to the
writer, however, that the utmost caution should be exercised in treating
such altered rock bodies, since it may not be possible in most cases to
discover exactly what was the primary condition of the rock before
alteration set in, and a primary crystalline structure may be mistaken
for a secondary one. The writer is not aware from personal experience,
that the two can be distinguished in most cases even. Differences
between the two, however, are to be expected, and both should be
carefully studied together. It is certain that very many structures
common to glassy rocks, such as litliophysm and other crystalline cavi¬
ties, must be highly modified by any process of secondary alteration.
In many cases the altered forms of igneous rocks can be distinguished
from their primary, fresh condition. It is to the unaltered forms of the
medium grained porpliyritic rocks that the terms porphyrite and por¬
phyry have been applied in this paper, which appears to the writer to
be their legitimate use. He would, therefore, urge those who have re¬
stricted the term porphyrite to altered andesite to restore it to its
original application in order that the porphyries or porphyrites of petrog¬
raphy may correspond to the porphyries of more general usage.

SHEET ROCKS.

The rocks occurring as intrusive sheets present a series of fine
grained holocrystalliue forms of porphyrite and a variety of diabase.
They are all more or less porphyritic, but vary somewhat in habit from
coarsely porphyritic to those in which the porphyritic structure is
scarcely noticeable. In color they range from dark to light gray, which
may be bluish, greenish, or brownish, according to the freshness or
degree of alteration of the rock.

In the upturned strata of the southeast spur the sheets vary in
thickness from 4 feet to 20 or 30 feet, and the rocks forming them often
exhibit characters which indicate that what are now two vertical sides
of the bodies were originally top and bottom surfaces of nearly hori¬
zontal sheets. Thus the two sides are often quite different. In one
instance what was the bottom of the sheet is much darker colored than
the body of the rock, which exhibits a strongly marked flow structure,
while the side which was formerly the top surface bears large spherical
nodules ranging from several inches to 10 inches in diameter. A still
more striking difference between the two sides of an upturned sheet is
found in a 30-foot sheet of augite-porpliyrite or diabase, which occurs
on the lower slope of the southeast spur and on the south side of the
large east gulcli. The rock is dense, massive, and greenish; near the
east contact, which was originally the bottom of the sheet, it is very
fissile and crumbles upon weathering, giving rise to a narrow gulch.
Immediately at the contact with the shale it is dense and much altered,

IDDINHS.]

INTRUSIVE SHEETS

585

with a purplish tinge of color. A layer of the sheet 4 or 5 feet thick
near the bottom contact is full of large porpliyritical augites. The
remainder of the body to the western contact or upper surface does
not contain them, but exhibits small feldspar plienocrysts and is more
massive, and weathers quite differently from the coarsely porpliyritie
portion of the body. The juesence of a broad band of rock carrying
all the large plienocrysts and situated on one side of a vertical sheet of
eruptive rock, could scarcely be accounted for if the body had been
intruded vertically, unless it was assumed that there had been two
intrusions of different magmas. But when it is found that the body
was originally a nearly horizontal sheet, the presence of a layer near
the bottom containing all of the large crystals of augite, while excep¬
tional, is nevertheless in accord with the observations of Charles Dar¬
win1 upon the basaltic flows of the Galapagos Islands, and of Clarence
King2 upon the lava streams of Hawaii. Both of these observers
mention instances in which the larger crystals had fallen to the bottom
of small basalt flows, leaving the upper parts quite free from them.
In these cases the magmas must have been very liquid.

The greater part of the sheet rocks that occur in the eastern part of
Electric Peak and come within the present discussion are somewhat de¬
composed. This appears to be due to the dislocation and shattering
which they have undergone at the time of the upturning of the strata
containing them. On the southeast spur they usually exhibit slicken-
sides and distinct evidences of crushing in conjunction with that of the
shales in which they lie, the shales frequently showing a crumpled
u cone-in-cone” structure near their contact with the sheet rocks. The
latter have in this way been rendered more susceptible to the decom¬
posing action of the atmosphere. In some instances the substance of
the ferromagnesian silicates has been destroyed, leaving only the original
form of the minerals recognizable. In general, however, the decompo¬
sition has not destroyed the feldspars nor materially affected the micro¬
structure of the rock.

As the fresher and more extensive occurrences of these intrusive
sheets will be fully described at another time, it is not necessary to enter
into a detailed account of them in this paper. Considered mineralog-
ically they comprise :

(a) Rocks whose essential minerals are lime-soda feldspar and pyr¬
oxene, with no hornblende.

(b) Rocks with lime-soda feldspar and pyroxene and some horn¬
blende. These embrace a few doubtful occurrences which may be up¬
turned sheets or vertical dikes.

( d ) Rocks like ( c ) with more biotite.

1 Volcanic Islands, London, 1851, p. 117.

2 U. S. Geol. Expl. of the Fortieth Parallel, vol. 1, Systematic Geology, p. 715.

586

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

(e) Bocks with lime-soda feldspar, biotite, and hornblende, the biotite
being in excess of the hornblende.

(/) Bocks like(e) with some quartz plienocrysts.

These variations in mineral composition are accompanied by changes
in the character and amount of the feldspars. Toward the end of the
series, in the order given, the feldspars become less and less basic, and
more abundant, and are associated with an increasing amount of quartz,
which appears microscopically in the groundmass of the rock. The
ferromagnesian silicates necessarily diminish in amount from the horn¬
blende end of the series toward the mica end.

The microscopical characters of the minerals in these rocks are simi¬
lar to those of the dike rocks of like grain, which will be described later
on. The groundmass has the same microstructure as that of the dike
rocks, and varies in the degree of crystallization from microcryptocrys¬
talline to microcrystalline.

By far the greater number of the sheets in Electric Peak are of
kornblende-mica-porphyrite, without pyroxene or porphyritical quartz.
Only two occurrences carry small quartz plienocrysts. The pyroxene-
bearing varieties form an insignificant part of the group.

The sheet rocks having been intruded between the sedimentary strata
prior to their steep upturning and to the vertical fracturing which ad¬
mitted the material forming the dikes and main stock, it appears that
the magma or magmas which took the form of sheets were characterized
for the most part by plienocrysts of hornblende and biotite, and that on
the one hand they pass into varieties bearing porphyritical quartz, and
on the other hand they grade into forms bearing pyroxene. Hence they
present varieties of rock which occur again as later eruptions in the
dikes and stock.

DIKE AND STOCK ROCKS.

As already mentioned the igneous rocks occurring in the stock and
its apophyses and in the dikes form a group of diorites and porpliyrites
of variable composition and structure. The greater number of the por-
phyrites and thorites are not separable, except in a general way, as they
are connected by intermediate structural varieties. In general, the
coarse grained and granular rocks, the diorites, are confined to the main
stock and the larger apophyses, while the porphyritic finer grained rocks,
the porpliyrites, occur in the dikes and small apophyses and along
the sides of the stock, in places, in contact with the sedimentary rocks.

The main body of the stock is diorite. It varies in structure and
composition, the variations being rapid in some places and very irregu¬
lar. There is ample evidence that a series of eruptions followed one
another through this conduit or fissure. The nature of this evidence
will appear when the rocks composing the stock are described in detail.
A study of the porpliyrites occurring as dikes and contact facies of the
stock reveals the fact that most of them differ from the main body of
diorite in the character of their porphyritical minerals, or those older
minerals which were present in the magma at the time of its eruption.

IDDINGS.]

MODE OF ERUPTION.

.587

Most of the porpliyrites are characterized by the presence of idioinorphic
hornblende and biotite, and by the absence of pyroxene. In some
varieties of the diorite there is evidence of an early crystallization of
brown hornblende, and of pyroxene, but none of biotite. In most of the
diorite, however, there is no evidence of any development of plienocrysts.

If we consider what would be the course of events when a synclinal
fracturing of sedimentary strata, as in the case of Electric Peak, per¬
mitted a series of molten magmas to be forced through the resulting
fissures, we see that the first magma would penetrate all the small
crevices connected with the larger fissures and fill them with its mate¬
rial, which would solidify rapidly as narrow dikes. The magma occu¬
pying the large fissures would remain molten much longer, consolidation
setting in on the sides and in the narrower portions. A subsequent erup¬
tion would force the molten portion out and replace it by other ma¬
terial. It would also fill up any new crevices or fissures made at the
time of its outbreak. But their number would probably be much smaller
than that of the crevices accompanying the first great upheaval or dis¬
location of the strata. Hence the number of dikes of the same magma
as that constituting the later eruptions would be smaller. The magma
which eventually closed the conduit would be represented by but few
dikes, unless the final outbreak had been accompanied by extensive
fracturing and dislocation. At Electric Peak the last intrusion of magma
was not a violent one, which indicates that the dynamical forces were
gradually dying out in this vicinity. The latest magma to rise in this
conduit was that of the quartz-diorite-porphyrite which broke through
the middle of the diorite stock and filled six or eight narrow crevices
stretching toward the southwest.

The rocks about to be described constitute a very complex group,
since they are portions of a series of magmas that have followed one
another with more or less interruption through the same conduit on
their way to the surface of the earth, and have consolidated under dif¬
ferent physical conditions. Their relations to one another are so inti¬
mate and their variations in composition and structure so gradual and
so extensive that it is almost impossible to discover any simple method
of presenting the facts regarding them. It will be necessary to treat
them collectively, owing to their number, and also to consider them in
different groupings and from different points of view.

For convenience of petrographical description and because the greatest
number of similar varieties of rocks will be brought together, they will
be treated in the following groups:

I. The greater number of dike rocks and some of the contact facies of
the stock, that are older than the main body of the stock.

II. The main body of the stock, with most of its contact facies, and
most of the rocks that have broken up through it, and some apophyses
that appear to be contemporaneous with it.

III. The quartz-mica-diorite-porphyrite which has broken up through
the main body of the stock, and has produced a few dikes.

588

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

1. THE DIKE ROCKS AND CERTAIN CONTACT FACIES OF THE STOCK.

Porphy rites. — The porphyrites forming the dikes, which are from 1 or
2 feet in width to 25 feet, have a generally uniform habit. They are
dense, fine grained rocks, filled with a multitude of small feldspars and
ferromaguesian silicates, mostly hornblende and biotite, which gives
them a uniformly speckled appearance, with occasional spots of white
feldspar or of black ferromaguesian silicates. The general habit is
modified by a variation in the color of the rock, due to the relative
abundance of the dark and light phenocrysts, and to the nature and
amount of the groundmass. The color of the rocks varies from dark
greenish and purplish gray to light gray of different tints. In the region
of the metamorphosed sandstones some of the dike rocks have been
bleached to white. The quartzose dike rocks will be described in con¬
nection with the quartz-mica-diorite-porphyrite in Group iii (p. 617.)

In the field it is observed that some are very fresh and compact, others
decomposed and disintegrated. They become rusted and weathered in
much the same manner as the metamorphosed strata containing them,
and are crossed by the same system of joints. For this reason they can
not be recognized at a distance on the face of the cliff at the head of the
east gulch.

When they are studied in thin sections under the microscope, they
are found to consist of a holocrystalline groundmass, with abundant
phenocrysts of lime-soda-feldspar and hornblende, generally with biotite
and occasionally with pyroxene. Mineralogically considered, they con¬
stitute a series of varieties of porpliyrite with a variable percentage of
hornblende, biotite, and pyroxene, without any one variety being par¬
ticularly predominant. They may be arranged in the following sub¬
divisions according to the relative amounts of the various ferromagne-
sian phenocrysts :

Table I. — Mineral variation of the porphyrites at Electric Peak.

Subdivisions.

Biotite.

Hornblende.

Pyroxene.

much.

some.

little.

some.

much.

some.

b .

d .

f .

some.

much.

£ .

b .

Besides the porphyritical biotite which crystallized previous to the
eruption of the rocks, there is some that was evidently crystallized at
the time of their final consolidation. The latter occurs in shreds and
irregularly shaped individuals.

The microscopical character of the different minerals is much the same
throughout the series, and no particular specimen will be described as

IDDINGS.]

VARIATION OF THE DIKE ROCKS.

589

the type rock, for the variations throughout the series are gradual, and
uo single variety should be selected to represent the remainder. The
variations affect the relative proportions of the minerals composing the
rocks and their microstructure. A gradual modification of the species
of the plagioclase feldspars may be detected by their optical properties,
but a corresponding range of changes within the isomorphic series of
the hornblendes, pyroxenes, or biotites is not recognizable, if it is
present. The variation in mineral constitution affects the microstruc¬
ture of the groundmass, an increase of quartz being accompanied by an
approach to a granular structure.

In describing theporphyrites which belong to the nine subdivisions just
given, it must be borne in mind that for each mineralogical variety there
is a range of structural forms which depend on the crystalline develop¬
ment of the rock. In order to give an idea of these different varieties
of porpliyrite the general features of each will be described first, and
afterwards the characteristics of the essential minerals.

(a) This variety, which is characterized by abundant phenocrysts of
biotite, some of hornblende, and no pyroxene, constitutes a narrow dike,
whose width varies from 10 inches to 10 feet. Specimens from its sides
and the middle, at a place where it is 8 feet wide, show that the ground-
mass of the rock, near its contact with the inclosing rocks, is fine
grained, being composed of irregular patches about 0-04mm in diameter.
The patches are clouded with minute particles, which are partly shreds
of mica and partly lath-shaped feldspar.

In the center of the dike the groundmass is made up of very irregular
patches, from 0*09mra to 0-43mm in diameter. They are filled with lath-
shaped feldspar microlites and minute gas cavities and carry micro¬
scopic hornblende and biotite. The patches are quartz, which has crys¬
tallized as the last mineral, and acts as a cement for those which preceded
it. Its true nature is recognizable in still coarser grained forms of sim¬
ilar rocks, where it can be tested optically. The quartz forming a sin¬
gle patch has one orientation and behaves as an optically uniform in¬
dividual, but the minerals inclosed in each patch of quartz have no uni¬
form orientation. The structure is the same as the poicilitic structure
of certain coarse grained rocks. It may therefore be called micropoici-
litic , and is to be distin guished from micropegmatitic structure by the fact
that in the latter case groups of the inclosed minerals have the same
orientation throughout each group.

Through the groundmass are scattered abundant phenocrysts of lime-
soda-feldspar from 1 to 2mm long and smaller crystals of hornblende and
biotite. The relative proportion of the hornblende and biotite is not
constant, the biotite being in excess of the hornblende in some speci¬
mens of the rock and equal to or even less than the hornblende in others.
The biotite preponderates in those specimens from this dike with the
fewest ferromagnesian silicates. As the amount of the dark colored
minerals increases the hornblendes increase. There is a little magnet¬
ite, apatite, and zircon.

590

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

(b) This is represented by a 4-foot dike just west of the summit of
Electric Peak. It is flue grained, with the same micropoicilitic struct¬
ure, the patches 0-05 mm in diameter. The rock is not entirely fresh, and
the phenocrystic plagioclases and micas are somewhat altered, but the
hornblendes are not so much decomposed.

( c ) is represented by a 2-foot dike on the southeast spur. The
groundmass is very tine grained, with a slightly micropoicilitic struct¬
ure which is not well marked, and merges into one in which the lath-
shaped feldspar microlites become more prominent. The hornblende is
considerably in excess of the biotite.

( d ) is represented by a 3-foot dike on the northeast spur, which is
dark colored at the center, but along the contact with the metamor¬
phosed sandstone is light colored, with fewer and more prominent pheno-
crysts. The groundmass is a fine grained aggregation of lath-shaped
feldspars and irregular grains; there is much iron oxide; phenocrysts
of hornblende and plagioclase are abundant; biotite is scarce.

( e ) is represented by a narrow dike a quarter of a mile west of the
summit of Electric Peak. The groundmass is very fine grained, com¬
posed chiefly of lath-shaped feldspars about 0*04 mm long, with some
irregular grains, and considerable chlorite resulting from the partial
decomposition of the hornblende. The iihenocrysts of hornblende and
feldspar are small; there is no mica.

In the foregoing varieties pyroxene is entirely absent, and the chief
variations are in the relative proportion of mica and hornblende, and
in the microstructure of the groundmass. The micropoicilitic structure
appears in those fine grained rocks which have a certain amount of
quartz. It is replaced by a “felt-like” structure in the more basic
varieties of nearly the same degree of crystallization.

(/) is represented by a 10-foot dike on the southeast spur. The
groundmass is fine grained, composed almost entirely of lath-shaped
and rectangular plagioclases, about 0-07 mm long, with some irregular
grains and microscopic hornblendes and shreds of biotite. There is
but little iron oxide. The porphyritical plagioclases and hornblendes
are abundant. There was probably a small amount of phenocrystic
pyroxene, which has been altered to fibrous green amphibole. Biotite
is present in shreds, but not as phenocrysts. It may have been formed
during the final crystallization of the magma, but part of it appears to
be secondary, due to the subsequent alterations of the rock.

(g) is represented by a contact facies of the main stock. The rock
resembles the other varieties of porpliyrite in its general habit and
structure. The groundmass is fine grained and is made up of latli-
sliaped, rectangular, and irregularly formed plagioclases, about 0-15mm
long, besides some quartz, with microscopical hornblendes and biotites.
The phenocrysts are hornblende and plagioclase in abundance, and much
pyroxene which has been completely nralitized. There are no pheno¬
crysts of biotite. Iron oxide, probably magnetite, is abundant. Apa-

IDDINGS.]

VARIATION OF THE DIKE ROCKS.

591

tite and zircon, if present, are rare. The development of the porpliy-
ritical hornblendes is particularly interesting and is described on page
593.

(h) is represented by a much, coarser grained variety, occurring as a
dike, 10 to 15 feet wide, on the southeast spur. It is, however, but
slightly porphyritic, consisting of a mass of lath-shaped plagioclases,
0-4mm to 0*7mm long, with very rarely a larger individual, lmm long. Be¬
tween these is a very small amount of cementing material, composed of
irregular grains of feldspar and quartz and ferromagnesian silicates, am-
pliibole, and mica. There is much uralitized pyroxene and a small amount
of primary hornblende, with some biotite. The latter appears to belong
to the period of final crystallization of the magma and is possibly due in
part to subsequent alteration. The largest idiomorphic minerals are the
altered pyroxenes, so that the rock undoubtedly belongs to a magma
which carried numerous pyroxenes and some hornblende at the time of
its eruption.

(i) is represented by a 4-foot dike on the northeast spur. It is dis¬
tinctly porphyritic; the groundmass of the central portion of the dike
rock is fine grained, composed of lath-shaped plagioclase about 0Tmm
long, and irregular grains of feldspar, with very little quartz. It also
contains shreds of biotite and microscopic amphibole, with some iron
oxide. The groundmass of the rock from the side of the dike is finer
grained, with the same general structure, but with no mica or amphibole;
there is, however, much colorless monoclinic pyroxene in irregular
grains, whose primary nature is questionable. The rock bears abun¬
dant plienocrysts of plagioclase and pyroxene, but none of hornblende or
biotite. In the center of the dike the pyroxene lias been completely
altered to uralite, which is also scattered through the groundmass.
Near the contact of the dike rock with the metamorphosed strata the
pyroxene is an almost colorless monoclinic species resembling that
which has resulted from an alteration of hornblende in other varieties
of porphyrite from this region, to be described later on. It does not
resemble the primary porphyritical pyroxenes which occur in the unal¬
tered varieties of these igneous rocks.

Besides the porphyrites just described there is a more quartzose
variety, found in several places, not far from the main stock. It has
reached a somewhat higher degree of crystallization and exhibits min-
eralogical characters peculiar to the diorite of the stock, which will be
fully described in that connection. There are also dikes or veins of
coarser grained rocks cutting the body of the stock and passing into
more massive portions of the same, which will not be considered with
the finer grained dike rocks.

As already remarked, the microscopical characters of the minerals
constituting these porphyrites are very nearly the same in all of the
varieties.

592

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Feldspar. — All the feldspars, so far as can be determined optically, are
species of the lime-soda feld spar series. All of the porphyritical individ¬
uals are idiomorphic and exhibit the characteristic polysynthetic twinning
according to the albite and pericline laws. Many of them are also twinned
according to the Carlsbad law. The forms of their sections are lath-
shaped, rectangular, and tabular, the general form of the crystals being
tabular parallel to the clinopinacoid. They possess a fine zonal struc¬
ture with varying optical orientation. From their optical behavior they
appear to range from labradorite to oligoclase, the former occurring in
the more basic porphyrites, rich in hornblende or pyroxene, the latter
predominating in the more acid varieties, rich in phenocrystic biotite.
The feldspars contain few primary inclusions, which are in some in¬
stances glass, in others microscopic grains of the other minerals. They
are much richer in secondary inclusions, largely gas cavities, or needles
of secondary amphibole.

The lath-shaped feldspars of the groundmass are also lime-soda feld¬
spars, but the specific character of the irregularly shaped feldspar grains
is not recognizable; they crystallized with the quartz at the time of the
final consolidation of the magma.

The feldspars are more distinctly idiomorphic than the hornblendes,
and are occasionally inclosed in large hornblendes; more rarely small
hornblendes are inclosed in the feldspars.

Hornblende. — The primary, phenocrystic hornblende is more or less
idiomorphic, but not always; occasionally its outlines are extremely ir¬
regular. It usually has crystallographic boundaries in the prism zone,
consisting of the fundamental prism, ooP, and the clinopinacoid, oPcc,
the terminal planes, when present, being Pao or P. Twinning parallel
to the orthopinacoid is frequently observed.

The color varies from brown to green, through various tones of red¬
dish brown, greenish brown, and light brown, brownish green, and olive
gray, sometimes with a tint of red, which approaches a violet gray.
The olive gray to violet gray tones are characteristic of much of the
hornblende of the porphyrites occurring in the dikes and intrusive
sheets; it is the component color transmitted parallel to the positive
optic axis, c, in many cases. The other components in the same horn¬
blendes are olive brown, parallel to b, and light brown, parallel to a.
The absorption is c>b>ct. The color is not always distributed uniformly
through the individual crystals. It sometimes occurs in irregular
patches, the darker color being generally in the central part of the crys¬
tal. It is evident that this regular distribution is sometimes due to the
original crystallization of the hornblende, and at others has been occa¬
sioned by secondary influences, which tend to bleach out the color. A
zonal distribution of the color is seldom observed.

The hornblendes throughout the series of porphyrites just described
have very nearly the same tones of color in different sections, but as the
basic end of the series is approached the colors grow slightly darker
and the brown tones are stronger, approaching chestnut brown.

IDDINGS.]

HORNBLENDE IN PORPHYRITE.

593

There are no characteristic inclusions. Iron oxide is frequently in¬
closed in the hornblende, and less often feldspar and apatite. When it
is associated with porphyritical biotite the latter is often inclosed by the
hornblende, and appears to be an older crystallization. In some cases the
hornblende bears numerous patches of biotite, indicating that they have
crystallized together. Where the hornblende is partly altered it some¬
times contains biotite in shreds and irregular aggregates that are un¬
doubtedly secondary.

The hornblendes of the dike rocks exhibit various degrees of altera¬
tion and decomposition, from those that are entirely fresh to those com¬
pletely altered. The change is usually into chlorite, accompanied by
epidote in irregular grains, which occasionally possesses a strong pleo-
chroism, from colorless to yellow and deep garnet red; calcite and quartz
are also developed. In some instances the compact hornblende is altered
to light green “reedy” amphibole, usually accompanied by chloritization.

In the fine grained porphyrites the outlines of the phenocrystic horn¬
blendes are sharply defined, as though the act of their crystallization
had received a sudden check, but in the coarser grained porphyrites
their outlines are often very irregular. Here the hornblende crystals
have grown against feldspars and other minerals, according to circum¬
stances, and are only partially idiomorphic.

In the variety described under ( g ), from a contact facies of the stock
rock, the crystallization of the brown hornblende has varied greatly with
different individual crystals within the area of one thin section of the
rock. With some of the porphyritical hornblendes it has ceased sud¬
denly, leaving them sharply outlined by crystal faces. With others
it has carried the hornblende substance against crystals of feldspar and
produced a rough surface. The margin of others is crowded with com¬
paratively large grains of magnetite and is also rough. Some of the
hornblendes have an irregular zone of magnetite and small feldspars,
outside of which the hornblende substance is free from inclusions, but
of very irregular form. In a few cases the crystallization of the brown
hornblende has extended into the period of the final consolidation of
the groundmass, and the resulting hornblende individual incloses within
its extremely irregular outline the various constituent minerals of the
groundmass. The color of these hornblendes is greenish brown and
reddish brown, sometimes in irregular alternating zones, generally with
the reddish brown color at the margin of the crystal. One large, ill-
shaped individual, of very pure substance, free from cleavage cracks,
has an irregular outline made up of small crystal faces, with some pro¬
jecting forms like attached crystals of the same substance. The margin
is a redder brown than the central part of the individual. Besides the
primary brown and the greenish brown hornblende, there is a great
amount of secondary green, reedy amphibole, resulting from the altera¬
tion of the pyroxene. It not only occupies the spaces of the original
pyroxenes, but fills the groundmass of the rock with small needles.
The primary brown hornblendes exhibit no signs of secondary alteration.

12 GrEOL - 38

594

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Biotite. — The porpliyritical biotite occurs in six-sided plates and
thicker crystals, occasionally twinned parallel to the basal plane. It is
dark reddish brown, with characteristically strong absorption. Optic¬
ally it appears uniaxial. Its substance is quite pure, with occasional
inclusions of apatite and zircon ; magnetite grains are scarce. In some
instances it is partially bleached, and the light colored spots often con¬
tain bundles of rutile needles lying at right angles and also parallel to
the edges of the basal plates. In the highly decomposed porphyrites
it is completely altered to chlorite and epidote, sometimes with caleite
and quartz.

The biotite of final consolidation, which occurs as a component of the
groundmass and does not belong to the same period of crystallization
as the porphyritical biotite, has the same optical characters, and can
be distinguished only by its mode of occurrence.

Pyroxene. — The primary phenocrystic pyroxenes of the few pyroxenic
dike rocks embraced in this grouping are recognizable only by their
form, as they have all been uralitized.

Iron oxide. — In the absence of direct chemical tests and of character¬
istic crystal forms the exact nature of the iron oxide occurring in these
porphyrites can not be determined. The chemical analyses of the rocks
shows the presence of a variable percentage of titanic acid.

Apatite. — This mineral is more abundant in the porphyrites rich in
phenocrystic biotite than in those free from it. It is colorless in most
cases, but in the rock described under (a) it occurs in comparatively
large gray crystals with slight pleochroism.

Zircon. — Zircon occurs in very small doubly terminated prisms. It
is closely associated with the phenocrystic biotite, and is more abundant
in the more siliceous porphyrites.

Secondary pyroxene. — The porphyrites in the metamorphosed sand¬
stones are in some instances perfectly white. The feldspars are fresh
and brilliant, as are also the small crystals of biotite scattered through
the rock. In thin sections they are found to resemble the other por¬
phyrites in general structure ; their feldspars are very fresh, and bear
numerous glass inclusions. The biotites are unaltered, but what from
their crystal forms were evidently once hornblendes are now colorless
augite. The hornblendes were originally very abundant, and the por-
phyrite belonged to the variety rich in hornblende, with a small amount
of biotite and with no primary pyroxene. There are no porphyritical
individuals exhibiting the crystal form of pyroxene. The augite sub¬
stance which now replaces hornblende is sometimes compact, and ex¬
hibits cleavage characteristic of pyroxene. Cross sections in such cases
have the crystal form of hornblende, bounded by the prism faces, mak¬
ing an angle of about 124°, together with the clinopinacoid, and exhibit
a perfect prismatic cleavage of about 00° corresponding to the prismatic
cleavage of augite, so oriented that the plane of symmetry in the augite
coincides with that in the original hornblende. There is also a less

IDDINGS.]

STOCK ROCKS AND APOPHYSES.

595

perfect pinacoidal cleavage. The substance of the augite is almost col¬
orless, with numerous gas cavities in some instances. It is highly re¬
fracting and highly doubly refracting, and possesses a high extinction
angle.

More frequently the augite is not compact, but is made up of small
individuals with more or less parallel orientation; these individuals are
not acicular but rather shortened prisms having an irregular form.
The same augite substance occurs in irregularly shaped grains and
patches through the groundmass in some cases.

Within the compact fresh feldspar a few small crystals of brown
hornblende still remain unaltered. In some occurrences the hornblende
phenocrysts are but partially changed to augite, which is scattered in
microscopical grains and patches through the groundmass. These grains
are sometimes crowded around an aggregation of colorless augite. In one
instance the augite is confined to the space originally occupied by the
hornblende. The specimens of porphyrite exhibiting this form of pseu¬
domorphism are mostly from near the contact with the sedimentary
strata and in the regions of contact metamorphism; one, however, is
from a narrow dike of whitened porphyrite on the southeast spur, at a
place where the strata are not so greatly metamorphosed.

The occurrence of secondary augite after primary hornblende is un¬
common, the writer not having noticed any mention of it by others ; it
appears to correspond crystallographically to that of secondary horn¬
blende after primary augite, though the two processes of alteration are
reversed, and the causes producing them are undoubtedly different.
What the causes may have been in this particular instance is not evi¬
dent.

II. THE STOCK ROCKS AND APOPHYSES.

The diorite forming the body of the main stock, which is 1,500 feet
across its widest exposure, presents a crystalline mass of variable
grain. A great part of it is coarsely crystalline, and is composed of
clusters of feldspars and ferromagnesian silicates that range from 5
millimeters to 2 millimeters in diameter, and smaller. The coarsest
grain is shown in Fig. 1, PI. xlviii, photographed natural size from
No. 201. The apparent grain of the rock is larger than it actually is,
for the constituent minerals are not intermingled uniformly but irreg¬
ularly, so that from two to a dozen crystals of feldspar are clustered
together, and two or more of the dark colored minerals ; this irregular¬
ity, however, recurs so regularly through the mass that the general
effect is that of uniformity. The true size of the grain of these forms
of the diorite, judged from the size of the feldspars, is from 2 millime¬
ters to 1 millimeter. A medium grained form is shown in Fig. 2, PI.
xlviii, natural size, No. 197. It constitutes a large portion of the diorite
mass. The grain of the rock sinks to fine grained, and to microcrystal¬
line in some instances. The variation in the grain of the rock is in
some places gradual, in others rapid. As the rock becomes finer grained

596

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

it grows darker colored; tlie finest grained portions are dark gray. In
numerous instances the gradual transition of this dark colored, fine
grained form was traced through increasing size of grain to light colored,
coarse grained diorite, and in the immediate vicinity of such transitions
the two extreme forms are also found in juxtaposition, with a sharp
line of demarcation between them, or the dark, fine grained form is cut
by narrow dikes or veins of the coarse grained form. Along the con¬
tact there are in places many fragments of different forms of the diorite,
dark and light, fine grained and coarse, which appear to have been
broken from older portions of solidified diorite by later magmas, which
also became diorite.

The mineral composition of the diorite is not uniform throughout the
body of the stock, which may be easily recognized in the field. Por¬
tions of it are richer in the ferromagnesian silicates than the average,
in which the proportions of the dark colored minerals to the light
colored is about one to one. In places the light colored minerals pre¬
ponderate. Parts of the body are noticeably richer in mica than the
main mass, which appears, macroscopically, to be composed of lime-
soda-feldspar, hornblende and biotite; the lighter colored varieties ex¬
hibit quartz, and the finest grained forms show only small porphyritical
feldspars and pyroxenes. In general, there is an absence of porphyri-
tic structure, the whole effect being evenly granular.

The component minerals of the diorites are hyperstliene, augite,
hornblende, biotite, lime-soda feldspar, orthoclase, and quartz. They
are not all present in each variety of the diorite, however, for these
varieties range from rocks with pyroxene and biotite to others with
hornblende and biotite and still others with biotite alone as the ferro¬
magnesian mineral. This range of mineral variation is shown in Table
II, in which («), (&), etc., represent different mineralogical modifica¬
tions of the rocks.

Table II. — Mineral variation of the diorites and their facies at Electric Peak.

Pyroxene.

Hornblende.

Biotite.

Labradorite.

Oligoclase.

Orthoclase..

Quartz.

much

little

some

much

some

little

some

much

little

some

much

some

little

some

(а)

(б)
<c>

( d )

(e)

(f)

(9)

The main body of the diorite is cut by dikes or veins of equally
coarse grained, lighter colored diorite, which sometimes approaches
granite in character and in one instance is a fine-grained granite
(Fig. 1, PI. xlix). In places the diorite is traversed by small seams of
feldspathic material, which often pass into larger seams with more
hornblende and biotite, and finally into veins having the composition
and structure of quartzose diorite.

U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XLVIII

FIG. 1. DIORITE (COARSE GRAIN).

FIG. 2. DIORITE (MEDIUM GRAIN),

1DDINGS.]

CONTACT FACIES.

597

Sucli narrow seams of feldspathic material appear to be the extremi¬
ties of the larger cracks in the earlier solidified magmas into which
the fluid portion of the subsequently intruded magma or magmas was
forced; that is, they are distinctly eruptive in their origin, and not of
a secondary nature. That portion of the magma which is the last to
crystallize, namely, the feldspathic, furnishes the material that pene¬
trates the extremely narrow cracks at the ends of the crevices, and the
material in the intermediate portion of the crevice between the ex¬
tremities and broader parts partakes more and more of the composition
and character of the intrudedr ock. The microstructure of such seams is
not that of the rock from which they spring, for the liquid portion of
the magma will be gradually separated from the crystals suspended in
it through the greatly increased internal resistance between the parti¬
cles of the fluid consequent on its flow through such narrow passages.

Some parts of the diorite bear numerous small masses of coarsely
crystallized rock, usually consisting largely of hornblende. They ex¬
hibit a variety of structures and appear to be segregations of early
crystallization.

As already mentioned, there are contact facies of the stock which ex¬
hibit characters that ally them to the porphyrites. Such forms grade into
the coarse grained diorites and appear to be portions of the mass that
have been cooled rapidly in consequence of their contact with the inclos¬
ing rocks. On either side of the central portion of the stock and on
the east side of the south end of it, the contact form of the diorite does
not differ greatly from the main mass ; it is somewhat finer grained, but
not much. This indicates that the magma out of which this part of the
diorite was formed was not chilled to any great extent by the sur¬
rounding rocks, and the inference is that the surrounding rocks were
heated when this part of the magma came in contact with them. The
occurrence of contact varieties of the rocks that range from flue
grained prophyritic forms to coarse grained ones proves that the tem¬
perature of the rocks with which they came in contact varied greatly.
Some were comparatively cold, others highly heated. If a series of
eruptions followed one another closely enough to prevent the heat of
one eruption from being entirely dissipated before the next one fol¬
lowed it, the surrounding rocks would be kept heated for a long period,
and the last eruption of a series with regular intervals would pass
through a hotter conduit than the earlier eruptions had passed through.

In describing the microscopical character of the stock rocks it will be
convenient to separate them into three subgroups, according to some
phases of their mineralogical composition indicated in Table II, as fol¬
lows:

II (a) Varieties in which the amount of the dark colored minerals ap¬
proximately equals that of the light colored minerals.

II (b) Varieties in which the amount of the light colored minerals ex¬
ceeds that the dark colored minerals, and in which the quartz is not
excessive.

598

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

II (c) Like II (b) but with much quartz.

By dark colored minerals are meant the ferromagnesian minerals and
by light colored minerals are meant the feldspars and quartz.

This grouping brings together varieties with structures similar in some
respects, though not necessarily of the same degree of crystallization ;
that is, size of grain. It also brings together rocks of approximately
the same chemical composition ; but the groups will be found to grade
into one another chemically, mineralogically, and structurally, and do
not represent any natural divisions of the rocks in the field, except iu
a general way. It brings together rocks which have different constitu¬
ent minerals, the differences being among the species of the ferromag¬
nesian silicates.

II (a) Varieties in which the amount of the dark colored minerals
approximately equals that of the light colored minerals. — This group
includes most of the main body of the stock rocks and is the most basic
of the three groups. It embraces a closely allied series of varieties
which vary structurally, mineralogically, and chemically within certain
limits.

The specimens on which the microscopical study of this group has
been based number thirty-two. They fall into a series of twenty-seven
different degrees of coarseness of grain, of which it can only be said
that each degree from fine to coarse is coarser than the preceding one.
There has been no attempt made to establish a scale of uniform de¬
grees.

Tables have been prepared to express as concisely as possible the
various mineralogical, structural, and chemical features of the rock
varieties under discussion. They will appear on a subsequent page and
will be referred to frequently.

At the coarse grained end of the series, Table VIII, column II (u),
p. 625, are the diorites which occur in the most massive exposures on the
northeast spur and have reached the highest development of crystalli¬
zation. Their structure is liypidiomorphic granular $ that is to say, the
component minerals have their proper crystallographic form to some ex.
tent, but a large part of them have irregular shapes, occasioned by the
interference of adjacent crystals during their crystallization.

The component minerals are lime-soda feldspars, hornblende, augite,
liypersthene, biotite, and quartz, with numerous grains of iron ore,
which appears to be magnetite.

The feldspars are more nearly idiomorphic than the other constituents,
but are not strictly so. They are mostly rectangular to lath-shaped.
Their outlines are not sharp, crystallographic boundaries, but are more
or less irregular ones, controlled by the growing together of neighbor¬
ing feldspars. Their outlines are also affected in most instances by the
juxtaposition of the other constituents of the rock.

The quartz forms irregular cementing grains, wholly allotriomorphic,
and is evenly scattered through the rock in small amount.

U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. XLIX

FIG. 1. GRANITE (FINE GRAIN),

FIG. 2. QUARTZ-MICA-DIORITE PORPHYRITE,

LiartARy

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

IDDINGS.]

DEGREES OF CRYSTALLIZATION.

599

Tlie hornblende, pyroxene, and biotite exhibit no crystal boundaries,
with some exceptions, and penetrate one another in the most intricate
manner.

The iron ore, from its crystal form, appears to be magnetite. It is
irregularly scattered through the ferromagnesian silicates and is occa-
sionly observed in the feldspars and quartz.

Apatite occurs in short, stout crystals, not very well formed, and
colorless.

Zircon is rare.

The diorites representing the seven highest grades of crystallization
in Table VIII, column II (a), correspond in structure to the description
just given. They vary, however, in the relative abundance of horn¬
blende, pyroxene, biotite, and quartz, as is indicated in the Table V. In
the coarsest form the feldspars average from 2*5mm to lmm long, and
the quartz grains about 0-25mm in diameter. In the seventh degree
from the coarsest end, the feldspars average from l*25mm to 0-5mm and the
quartz grains about 0T2mm.

As the grain of the rocks becomes smaller there is a greater develop¬
ment of idiomorphic forms, especially of the hornblende and biotite.
Since all the other minerals are generally idiomorphic with respect to
quartz, that is, are bounded by their proper crystal planes when ad¬
joining quartz, the number of idiomorphic individuals of hornblende
and biotite increase with the amount of quartz in the rocks.

Without any apparent interruption in the gradual variations in struc¬
ture accompanying the diminution in the size of the grain, the structure
of the thirty-third degree differs from that of the forty-fifth in that the
number of partially idiomorphic individuals is very much greater. The
feldspars are partly idiomorphic, partly allotriomorphic, some being
rectangular, others broader and irregular in form like the quartz.
Hornblende and biotite frequently exhibit their crystal form. Pyroxene
is a prominent constituent, but is surrounded more or less by idiomorphic
hornblende. The average length of the feldspars is 046mm.

At grade 26 the grain is reduced to about half of that at 33, and
averages about 0*23mm, but there is more inequality between the feld¬
spars, a porphyritic structure becoming more pronounced. Macro-
scopically, however, this variety of the rock has a uniformly granular
habit.

The variety representing the twenty-third grade is composed of a
mass of lath-shaped or rectangular feldspars and more irregular indi¬
viduals of feldspar with some quartz. These average 0T7mm in length
and carry many larger crystals of feldspar, besides much hornblende,
pyroxene, and biotite, in very nearly equal proportions.

The next grade, 22, is considerably finer grained and has a some¬
what different structure. It is still more porphyritic, the larger crystals
of feldspar grading down into smaller ones, until they reach a diameter
of about 0*08mm. The smaller grains of feldspar are mingled with those

600

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

of quartz, aud in the finer grained forms of this variety of the stock-
rock give the groundmass its peculiar mottled appearance. The variety
representing grade 22 bears much pyroxene and considerable mica,
with less hornblende; magnetite is abundant in small grains or crystals.

Grade 14 is represented by a much finer grained form of rock with
marked porpliyritic structure. The groundmass is a lioloerystal-
liue aggregation of grains of feldspar and quartz, whose outline is
poorly defined; it is filled with microscopic pyroxenes and magnetite
grains. The phenocrysts are lime-soda feldspar, hypersthene, augite,
with some irregular patches of biotite. There is no hornblende. The
porpliyritical pyroxenes range from 0-5mra to 0-25mm approximately.

The varieties representing the five grades, from 17 to 13 inclusive,
have very much the same structure and composition, and might be
classed as liolocrystalline p y ro xene -p o rp hy r i tes. They belong to the
main body of the stock rocks and form with them one geological body,
the fine grained variety grading by imperceptible transitions into the
coarse grained. They also have nearly the same chemical composition.

This group of rocks, therefore, presents a continuous series of varie¬
ties, that range from fine grained hypersthene-porphyrite with small
phenocrysts to coarse grained horublende-mica-diorite with a variable
percentage of pyroxene.

The essential character of the minerals constituting the different
varieties under consideration are much the same throughout the series,
and since the variations in their microscopical character are intimately
connected with the general structure of the rock in each case, and have
an important bearing on the question of the development of crystalliza¬
tion in the rock, it seems advisable to describe the microscopical char¬
acters of the various minerals with reference to these variations. For
this reason the detail description will begin with the minerals as they
occur in the finest grained forms, although these forms are not the
most characteristic of the main body of the stock. Such a method of
treatment is admissible when it is considered that the different varie¬
ties included in this grouping have in some instances been collected
from one continuous rock mass within short distances of one another,
and were intended to illustrate the actual transition of the fine grained
forms into the coarse grained. Thus, specimens Nos. 172, 173, 174,
175, 183, and 101, were collected from a continuous exposure of massive
rock which exhibited a gradual transition of grain. They occurred
about 1 foot apart in the order given, the extremes being 5 feet
apart. The grain of the rock changes rapidly from No. 175 to No. 183.
Specimen No. 170 is from the same body of rock as Nos. 172, 173, etc.
Specimens Nos. 181, 182, 185, 188, and 193 are also from one continuous
mass of rock exhibiting a gradual change of grain. They all occurred
along a line not more than 4 feet long. The mass from which they
were taken was continuous with that from which No. 171 was collected,
and was within a few feet of it. These two series were collected within

IDDINGS.]

FELDSPAR IN DIORITE.

G01

a hundred yards of one another and appeared to be portions of the same
mass. They range from the thirty-fifth to the thirteenth grade of crys¬
tallization (Table VIII).

Microscopical characters of the feldspars. — In the finest grained form
of pyroxene-porphyrite, No. 170, the porphyritical feldspars that lie
scattered through the holocrystalline groundmass are sharply idiomor-
pliie. They are lath-shaped and rectangular, some having less regular
outlines. They all exhibit polysynthetic twinning and high angles of
extinction which indicate that many individuals belong to labradorite.
They vary greatly in regard to inclusions : many are nearly free from
all kinds of inclusions, others are so filled with them that the feldspar
substance is subordinate to that of the foreign minerals. These are
mostly pyroxene in rounded grains and prisms, and magnetite, which
are also abundant in the groundmass. In some instances the section
of a feldspar appears darker than the surrounding groundmass, for the
pyroxene and magnetite grains are smaller and more abundant in the
former. Some of these impure feldspars exhibit low extinction angles
and interference colors, but others appear to be of the same species as
the feldspars free from inclusions. Zonal structure is well marked op¬
tically, and occasionally controls the arrangement of the inclusions.
Some feldspars bear colorless glass inclusions, but they are not very
numerous.

Where the feldspar and pyroxene plienocrysts are clustered together,
the latter are surrounded by the former, and the crystal form of the
pyroxene is interfered with by the feldspars, proving that the pyrox¬
enes began to crystallize before the feldspars, but did not finish before
the feldspars commenced. These surrounding feldspars have variable
amounts of inclusions.

The feldspars in the next variety, No. 171, have much the same
characters as those just described. The inclusions in the different
feldspars vary from almost none to great numbers evenly distributed
through the crystal. In some they are confined to the margin, in
others to the center of the individual. Some feldspars contain swarms
of minute dots and short needles or rods apparently opaque. The nee¬
dles are arranged in a number of sets of parallel lines, which do not
appear to bear any fixed relation to the axes of the crystals, for they
pass through twin lamellae without change of direction. They are
sometimes more abundant in one lamella than another and usually
form irregularly shaped clouds, which exhibit no connection with
cracks or cleavage planes in the feldspars. They appear to be pri¬
mary. These minute dots and needles occur with the other inclu¬
sions — magnetite grains, pyroxene, apatite, and glass.

In the next three grades of the rock specimens, Nos. 172, 173, and
174, the feldspars are like those described, but their crystallographic
outline is less sharply defined. In grade 22, No. 175, the porphy¬
ritical feldspars have a narrow marginal zone of purer feldspar sub¬
stance. It has much fewer inclusions, sometimes being free from them.

602

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

It exhibits the same twinning as the inner feldspar, but has a lower
angle of extinction, which indicates that the outer zone is composed of
a more alkaline lime-soda feldspar than the central portion. The inner
feldspar has a sharp idiomorpliic form, while the outer zone is allotrio-
morphic, having crystallized against other individuals in the ground-
mass. The zones around the large and small feldspars are of about
the same width and are apparently synchronous. In the groundmass
there are small, rectangular, unstriated feldspars scattered through
larger individuals of quartz. There are only a few grains of pyroxene
in the groundmass; magnetite is quite abundant in grains which are
smaller than in the finer grained varieties of the rock.

In the same rock, 1 foot from the last specimen, the grain is consid¬
erably coarser and is grade 29, No. 183. Here the feldspars are
larger, the central portion has the same kinds of inclusions as the feld¬
spars just described, with the addition of a little hornblende in rounded
grains and biotite in minute plates. The marginal zones are broader
and of very pure substance. The feldspar and quartz of the ground-
mass is in larger grains. At the distance of another foot the rock is
grade 33, and the character of the feldspars is about the same as in
those forms of the rock just described.

In the varieties embraced in the series Nos. 181, 183, 185, 188, and
193 the phenocrystic feldspars have the same characters and inclusions
as those just mentioned. The central core carries more or less inclu¬
sions of magnetite, pyroxene, biotite, hornblende, and apatite; the
outer zone is of pure feldspar substance. As the coarser grained form,
No. 193, grade 35, is approached the number of these kinds of in¬
clusions in the feldspars diminishes and their size increases. The
swarms of black dots and needles occur in various feldspar individuals
throughout these grades. The feldspars in the other forms of the rock
represented in the table between grades 13 and 35 have the same
characteristics as those in the series described. It is observed that the
number of individulized inclusions decreases as the rock is coarser and
that the swarms of dots and needles increase. In the coarser grained
forms biotite and hornblende occur with the pyroxene and magnetite as
inclusions in the larger feldspars. In many of the feldspars there are
colorless rectangular inclusions, with a black dot near one end, which
are oriented parallel to the vertical axis of the crystals. In most cases
they behave like isotropic substances, but occasionally appear to be
doubly refracting. The black dots do not appear to be spherical
and the nature of the inclusions is doubtful; they suggest glass inclu¬
sions, but are indeterminable.

In the still coarser grained forms the feldspars are larger, the pres¬
ence of a central core with a margin of more alkaline feldspar is still
recognizable in most individuals though not in all. Inclusions of the
ferromagnesian silicates are less abundant, but those of opaque dots
and needles are more so; in some cases giving a brown tint to the feld-

IDDINGS.]

QUARTZ AND PYROXENE

603

■spar. They are confined, almost exclusively, to the inner feldspar,
which sometimes exhibits fine zonal structure. The twin lamellae are
much broader than in the small porphyritical feldspars of the fine grained
forms. In some individuals there are many thin lamellae twinned ac¬
cording to the albite and pericline laws. None of the outlines are
idiomorphic. As the grain of the groundmass becomes very coarse it
is evident that among the irregular grains of feldspar, most of which
are striated, there are some of orthoclase. These never exhibit an ap¬
proach to idiomorphism and share with the quartz a completely allotrio-
morphic habit. These two minerals were undoubtedly the last to
crystallize out of the magma.

The large feldspars of the coarsest grained form of the rocks are about
three times as large as the porphyritical feldspars in grade 13. In
the coarse grained forms they have the characteristic inclusions and
twinning of labradorite, as it occurs in many gabbros and norites. In
most of the sections the feldspars are extremely fresh and unaltered, in
a few they are partly clouded in the central portion.

The quartz occurs in allotriomorphic grains with the most irregular-
outline; it fills the interspaces between the other minerals. In the finer
grained varieties of the rock its substance is extremely pure, and free
from characteristic inclusions. There are almost no gas inclusions;
minute crystals of apatite with occasional grains of other minerals are
often inclosed by it. In the coarser grained varieties the quartz carries
more gas inclusions, often in dihexahedral shapes ; fluid inclusions are
less numerous ; the relative amount of fluid in the cavities varies con¬
siderably; in rare instance the bubble is in motion. The abundance
and size of the gas cavities increases with the coarseness of the grain of
the rock.

The ‘pyroxenes in these rocks are hypersthene and augite, the relative
amounts of which are variable. The hypersthene is distinctly pleo-
chroic in thin sections; the colors are green || c, yellow || a, and light
red || b. Very rarely there is zonal difference in the color of the hyper¬
sthene; this is noticed on strongly colored individuals. The form of the
phenocrysts in the finest grained rocks is in part idiomorphic, some of
the crystals being sharply defined; the outline of others is rough in the
prism zone, and fringed at the terminations by the projection of micro¬
scopic crystals of pyroxene. The greater number are quite irregularly
shaped, and exhibit no crystal outlines. In the well formed crystals the
pinacoids are large and the prism faces small. Cleavage is not well
developed, and is often absent from longitudinal sections; a prismatic
cleavage is most always observed in cross sections. Occasionally there
is a cleavage or parting parallel to the brachypinacoid. The augite is
light green in thin sections and is not pleochroic. Its forms are similar
to those of hypersthene, but the cleavage is more pronounced and is
always present in longitudinal sections. It is occasionally twinned
parallel to the orthopinacoid. It is distinguished from hypersthene by

604

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

its optical characters. The two species are often easily confused when
the hypersthene sections are not distinctly pleocliroic. Their general
habit, their form, substance and inclusions, and their behavior toward
the other minerals associated with them, are so much alike that they
may be described together as the pyroxenes.

In the few instances where decomposition has affected the rocks un¬
der investigation the hypersthene has yielded before the angite. Most
of the rocks, however, are remarkably fresh and exhibit no signs of de¬
composition. The substance of both the plienocrystic hypersthene
and augite is mostly very pure and free from characteristic inclusions.
Some of the large pyroxenes bear numerous irregular colorless inclu¬
sions, with no bubbles, and of an indeterminable nature, besides grains
of magnetite. In the fine grained varieties of the rock the microscopic
pyroxenes bear numerous grains of magnetite and rounded grains of the
colorless indeterminable mineral. These microscopic pyroxenes, which
fill the groundmass of the varieties of the rock, are mostly rounded, but
are also idiomorphic. They appear to be in part hypersthene and in
part augite. They have attached themselves with parallel orientation
to some of the porphyritical pyroxenes, producing very irregular out¬
lines. In other cases, the growth of the large individuals has contin¬
ued into the period of crystallization of the microscopic ones, for they
have added to their purer substance a margin of pyroxene material
filled with the same minute inclusions that occur in the microscopic in¬
dividuals. This is true of both the hypersthene and augite.

Where individuals of the two species have grown in conjunction the
hypersthene is evidently the older, being inclosed by augite. The two
are sometimes intergrown, indicating that their crystallization was in
large part synchronous. The character of the intergrowths of these two
mineral species is especially important because of its bearing on the in¬
tercrystallization of other minerals in these rocks. The hypersthene
generally occupies the central place, and is often entirely surrounded
by the augite, but quite as frequently the augite only partially sur¬
rounds the hypersthene, and occasionally the two penetrate one another
irregularly and intimately. In the cases where the hypersthene is sur¬
rounded by augite, the hypersthene jiossesses no crystallographic form
or outline, but is irregularly rounded or rough and jagged (PI. L, Pig.
1). The augite material is in direct contact with the irregular surface
of the hypersthene, and forms a single augite individual, oriented par¬
allel to the inclosed hypersthene. There is often no physical line of
demarcation between the two substances, except that produced by a
change of color when present, and by the different optical effects be¬
tween crossed nicols. When the section of the two minerals exhibits
nearly the same color for both, the presence of an inter growth may
easily be overlooked in ordinary light. The cleavage fractures and
cracks often traverse the two minerals without noticeable change of di¬
rection, and behave as though the compound individual were a simple

IDDINGS. ]

PYROXENE AND BIOTITE.

605

one. In places where the plane of contact between the two minerals is
inclined to the axis of the microscope (line of vision) the colors of the
two blend into one another, as do also their interference colors between
crossed nicols.

In one instance a group of pyroxenes and feldspars have crystallized
in conjunction. The hy per s then e and augite exhibit almost the same
color, the pleochroism of the hyperstliene being almost imperceptible.
In the illustrations on Pis. l and Li, the colors given to the various
minerals are in a measure conventional. They are those characteristic
of the minerals under certain conditions, and have been used in this way
in order to avoid a multiplicity of colors or tones, or the necessity of
reproducing the jcolors exhibited in polarized light. In the intergrowth
just mentioned a large, irregularly outlined pyroxene appears in ordi¬
nary light to be a homogeneous individual, traversed by irregular cracks
and imperfect cleavage planes. Between crossed nicols it resolves itself
into an intergrowth of hyperstliene and augite, whose substances inter¬
lock irregularly, as shown in the illustration. (PI. l, Fig. 2.) There is
nothing in the section, viewed in ordinary light, to indicate where the
hyperstliene substance ends and the augite begins. They have evi¬
dently crystallized at the same time and have interlocked crystals.

The pyroxenes inclose comparatively large grains and crystals of
magnetite, with which biotite is intimately associated. In the coarser
grained varieties of the rocks the pyroxenes exhibit the same optical
characters as those in the fine grained, which indicates that their chem¬
ical composition is nearly constant. Their form becomes more and more
irregular and their size larger, but they are fewer in number and become
less prominent as a constituent of the rock.

The biotite is in irregularly shaped patches, usually composed of one
individual. In many cases it surrounds the magnetite completely,
especially when lying in the groundmass. But where they are con¬
nected with the large pyroxenes the biotite often occurs on the side of
the magnetite farthest from the center of the pyroxene and extends to
the outside of the latter, as shown in the illustration (PI. l, Figs. 1 and 3),
indicating that it began to crystallize about the time the attached mag¬
netite was being inclosed in the pyroxene, and continued after the
pyroxene’s growth ceased, as it grows larger toward the outside of the
pyroxene crystal and is often found surrounding the latter. The sur¬
face of contact between the pyroxene and biotite is very irregular and
indicates that they interfered with each other’s growth. The crystalli¬
zation of the biotite appears to antedate that of the microscopic pyrox¬
enes of the groundmass, but not wholly, for the biotite occasionally
incloses grains of pyroxene. Its growth was interfered with by the
feldspars of the groundmass, which it sometimes incloses in rounded
grains. Biotite and pyroxene occur intergrown in the same irregular
manner as that observed between hyperstliene and augite, but the crys¬
tallographic orientation is not so uniform. The biotite is the outside min-

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

606

era] . The irregularity of the boundary between the two minerals is shown
in the accompanying illustration (PI. l, Fig. 4) from No. 174. As the rock
becomes coarser grained the biotite is better developed, that is, it is in
larger patches and is more abundant. There is only a little biotite in
the finest grained variety of the rock, grade 13. The character of the
biotite is constant throughout this group of rock varieties. It is dark
brown, with strong absorption and an almost uniaxial optical character.
Its form is allotriomorphic and very irregular; the size of the indi¬
viduals increases with the grain of the rock. It has no characteristic
inclusions.

Hornblende appears as an essential constituent of the rock as it becomes
coarser grained. At grade 22, No. 175, the hypersthene and augite
individuals are surrounded more or less completely by compact brownish
green hornblende, which also occurs to some extent in independent
individuals. In other and coarser grained varieties of the rock, where
it maintains the same relation to the pyroxenes, it sometimes exhibits
sharply defined, idiomorphic forms. Cross sections are bounded by the
prism faces making an angle of 124°, and by the clinopinacoid as a small
plane, with the orthopinacoid strongly developed. The characteristic
prismatic cleavage is always present in cross sections, but does not
always appear in longitudinal sections. Terminal planes are also ob¬
served in some instances. But the great majority of individuals are
allotriomorphic, and have very irregular outlines of the same character
as those of the pyroxenes in the finer grained varieties of the rock.
They are in no case acicular or columnar, but are always compact.
The pleochroism is brownish green parallel to c and b, and light brown
parallel to a; c > b > a. There are no characteristic inclusions, but
magnetite and biotite are often included in great amount.

The hornblende has crystallized around the augite and hypersthene
in the same manner as that in which the augite surrounds the hypers¬
thene. It is observed immediately surrounding either of the pyroxenes
singly, or both together. In most cases the growths are parallelly
oriented, but the pyroxene is frequently inclosed by the hornblende in
various orientations. The line of demarcation between the two is as
indefinite and as irregular as that between the hypersthene and augite.
The pyroxene is very irregularly bounded and the union of the horn¬
blende and pyroxene substances is often so perfect that the color and
optical characters alone distinguish the different individuals. In longi¬
tudinal sections the cleavage is frequently continuous through both
minerals, but in cross sections and inclined sections the cleavage is no
longer parallel. It also happens occasionally that the pyroxene pos¬
sesses irregular fractures which do not penetrate the hornblende.
There is no uniform relation between the position or amount of horn¬
blende and those of the inclosed pyroxene. The hornblende may form a
nai row or broad border around the pyroxene or may surround only a part
of the pyroxene, or they may occur independently of each other; all these

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL.L.

Geo.S Harris &SoriB LithPhila

INTERGROWTHS OF MINERALS IN D 1 0 RITE .

LIBRARY

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

IDDINGS.]

HORNBLENDE IN DIORITE.

607

different relations are observed in the same thin section. The irregu¬
larity is shown in the illustrations. PI. l, Fig. 5, represents an
intergrowth of augite and green hornblende, and Fig. G represents an
irregular growth of green hornblende around hypersthene. The horn¬
blende incloses some grains of augite and magnetite, and has four
individuals of biotite attached to it. The primary nature of the horn¬
blende is unquestionable ; cross sections exhibiting the intergrowtli are
observed in great numbers and in all cases where the outline is bounded
by crystal faces it exhibits the characteristic forms of hornblende, as
in PI. l, Fig. 7. The hornblende does not penetrate the pyroxene
in acicular needles; the junction between them is often sharp-edged and
well defined by the color. Where the plane of junction is inclined to
the line of vision, the two minerals wedge out in the section and their
colors appear to shade into each other.

The hornblende not only surrounds the pyroxene in the manner just
described, but in many cases intermingles with it in parallel orientation,
presenting an intergrowth of the two minerals which corresponds ex¬
actly to the intergrowtli of hypersthene and augite already described.
This is oftener observed in the coarser grained varieties of the rocks than
in the finer grained, but occurs in the latter also. Such an intergrowth
is represented in the illustration, PI. l, Fig. 8, taken from the coarsest
grained variety, No. 202. The outline between the hornblende and augite
is distinct; the shapes of the augite within the hornblende are very ir¬
regular, but the augite on the outer edge has its crystal form and appears
to have continued its growth after the hornblende had ceased. They
have evidently crystallized contemporaneously. The relative amount
of hornblende and pyroxene varies in the different modifications of the
rock studied. In some the hornblende greatly preponderates over the
pyroxene, which occurs scattered through the hornblende individuals.
This relation is expressed approximately in Table V.

Biotite and magnetite occur in the same connection with the horn¬
blende as with the pyroxene in the finer grained varieties. Magnetite
is scattered through the hornblende very irregularly, being abundant in
some cases and absent in others. Biotite is often intergrown with the
hornblende and pyroxene groups, and also incloses them in many cases,
and occurs in isolated individuals with irregular shapes. The greater
part of its growth seems to have been later than that of the hornblende.

A dark brown variety of hornblende occurs in some of the rocks of
this group. Its relations to the other minerals are of great interest in
connection with the question regarding the magmas involved in this
complicated series of eruptions. It is chestnut brown to greenish brown,
and resembles in this respect most of the porphyritical hornblende in
the andesites of Sepulchre Mountain. It occurs in irregularly shaped
individuals intergrown with the other minerals in such a manner as to
indicate their nearly contemporaneous growth. In many cases it is
evident that it is distinctly different from the brownish green hornblende.
This is brought out by such groups as that represented by Fig. 9, PI. l.

608

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

As in the illustration, the dark brown hornblende generally forms the
central body of the mineral group, but sometimes incloses small indi¬
viduals of feldspars, augite, and liypersthene with magnetite. Biotite is
included near the margin of the brown hornblende, but is more abun¬
dant in the green hornblende which surrounds the brown hornblende.
It frequently occurs in this association and indicates that in these in¬
stances the crystallization of the biotite set in after that of the brown
hornblende and before that of the green, though its crystallization in
many cases appears to set in after that of the green hornblende.

There are instances where the distinction between the dark brown
and the green hornblendes is not so definite and is not separated by
the commencement of the crystallization of a third mineral. In these
cases the form of the brown hornblende is exceedingly irregular; the
boundary between the two is sometimes sharp edged, but often is inde¬
terminable, and the two shade into each other. There is usually no ap¬
proach to a zonal arrangement of the colors, and their distribution is as
irregular as the outward form of the individual or as that of the inter-
grown minerals already described. The general absence of zonal struc¬
ture in the hornblende and pyroxenes of this group of rocks is noteworthy
and will be discussed subsequently. It appears to some extent in the
distinctly porphyritic modifications of the rock. In the contact facies
of the diorite, already described, No. 139, the idiomorphic form of the
hornblende is accompanied by a zonal distribution of the color. The
reddish brown color occurs at the center and also along the margin of
brownish green hornblendes and appears to be the result of primary
crystallization. In the same way the brown hornblende in the coarse
grained diorites appears to belong to a phase of the hornblende crystal¬
lization distinct from that of the brownish green hornblende.

Magnetite occurs in well developed crystals and irregular grains,
which contain more or less titanic oxide as shown by the chemical
analyses. In the porphyritic varieties of the rock, magnetite appears
in large porphyritieal grains and in a multitude of minute grains in the
groundmass, evidently the product of two generations. As the rock
becomes coarser grained the individuals of magnetite are larger and
fewer in number. In the coarsest grained varieties they are much fewer
in number and appear to belong to one generation.

Apatite is not observed in the finest grained varieties of the rock, but
is first noticed in the twenty-third grade, No. 176, where it occurs in
microscopically minute crystals, sharply idiomorphic. As the grain of
the rock increases they appear as larger and larger crystals, but fewer
in number. Their size and amount are not perfectly regular throughout
the different varieties of rock included in this group, so that there is no
definite relation between the size of the apatite and the grain of the
rock, but the variation in size and amount is very noticeable in a general
way. They attain their largest development in No. 201, where they
reach 0*45 Ium. In this rock their form is irregular, with no crystal
outlines.

IDDINGS.]

RECAPITULATION.

609

Zircon is scarce. It is not noticed in the finest grained varieties of
the rock. It first appears in very small crystals and in the coarser
grained rocks it is in larger crystals. Thus both the zircon and apatite
in this group of rocks appear to vary in size with the grain of the rock;
that is to say, their crystallization was influenced by the conditions
which controlled the degree of crystallization of the whole rock.

Recapitulation. — Some of the variations in the microscopical habit
of the minerals composing this group of rocks may be briefly recapit¬
ulated as follows :

The idiomorphic feldspars and the zonal portion of the allotriomorphic
ones increase in size with the grain of the rock. Their twin lamellm
become broader; the number of inclusions of ferromagnesian silicates
and magnetite diminish, and the abundance of minute dots and needles
increases with the grain of the rock. The feldspar, forming irregular
grains in the groundmass of the porphyrites, crystallizes as a border
around the idiomorphic individuals in the coarser grained varieties; is
allotriomorphic and more alkaline. Orthoclase is recognizable in the
coarsest grained varieties.

Quartz occurs only in allotriomorphic individuals, which are nearly
contemporaneous with the orthoclase. The gas and fluid inclusions in¬
crease in number and in size with the size of the quartzes and the grain
of the rock.

Hypersthene and augite occur in idiomorphic and allotriomorphic
individuals in the porphyrite; are much more irregularly shaped in the
coarser grained varieties of the rock and are in larger individuals.

Primary brownish green hornblende occurs in the same manner, and
dark brown hornblende appears as an independent crystallization, but
is not always present.

Biotite occurs almost wholly in allotriomorphic forms.

The ferromagnesian silicates occur isolated to some extent, but are gen¬
erally intergrown in the most intimate manner. There is an apparent
order in the time when they started to crystallize, but they have evidently
grown synchronously to a large extent. This is more noticeable in the
coarser grained varieties of the rock, where all of the minerals exhibit
mutual interference with those near them in the order of crystallization.
Where the extremes of this order are in conjunction the older mineral
has its idiomorphic form.

Magnetite occurs in two generations in the porphyrites ; the evidences
of a second generation cease as the rock becomes coarse grained, and
the size of the individuals increases and their number diminishes.

Apatite occurs in abundant minute idiomorphic crystals in the finer
grained varieties, and is in much fewer, larger, poorly shaped indi¬
viduals in the coarse grained varieties.

Zircon is more noticeable in the coarser grained rocks, and is in
larger crystals.

12 GrEOL - 39

610

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

INTERGROWTH OF HORNBLENDE AND PYROXENE IN GLASSY ROCKS.

Itis important to emphasize the primary nature of the hornblende found
intergrown with the augite and hypersthene in the diorite just described.
Similar intergrowths are mentioned by Prof. Rosenbusch as of com¬
mon occurrence in those diorites in which all of these minerals are de¬
veloped.1 Its resemblance to certain paramorphic changes of pyroxene
to compact hornblende in other coarse grained rocks described by
George H. Williams,2 G. W. Hawes,3 R. D. Irving, and C. R. Van Hise,4
may in some minds cast a doubt on its primary nature in the rocks
under investigation. It is to be remarked that Prof. Williams in his
paper observes with regard to the cases described by the other investi¬
gators mentioned, u In neither of these instances, however, are the
proofs of paramorphism adduced entirely convincing.” In his own
paper he rests his case on the very irregular boundary between the
pyroxene and hornblende, on the fact that the hornblende penetrates
the pyroxene in the form of u the most delicate possible tongues and
shreds,” extending u in every direction, though they seem to be most
developed in the direction of its cleavage.” And, further, on the appar¬
ent gradual transition of one mineral into the other optically.

With regard to the last observation it is self-evident that thin edged
portions of minerals with similar indices of refraction, which wedge out
against one another within the space of a rock section, appear to pass
into one another by insensible gradations of color. This can be ob¬
served in the case of inclined contacts between hypersthene and feldspar
in which case there is no suspicion of an actual transition of substance
or intermediate stage of chemical character. There is no direct evidence
brought forward in the paper cited to show by the crystal outline of the
mineral that the original form was that of a pyroxene, as in the case of
uralite. The whole argument seems to the writer to hang on the fact that
the hornblende penetrates the pyroxene in tongues and shreds, in which
respect it resembles the paramorphism of pyroxene to uralite. From the
writer’s acquaintance with instances of undoubtedly primary inter-
growths of hornblende with other minerals, the last-mentioned argument
for the paramorphism of compact hornblende from pyroxene does not
seem to him to be sufficient. Because of the doubt which may have been
cast upon the primary nature of certain intergrowths of hornblende and
pyroxene it has seemed advisable to recall to those who have studied
glassy volcanic rocks, and to present to those unfamiliar with them,
some of the numerous instances of the nearly contemporaneous crystal¬
lization of hornblende and pyroxene, which are identical with those
observed in the diorite at Electric Peak. Their occurrence in perfectly

1 Mikroskopische Physiographic der Massigen G-esteine. Stuttgart, 1887, p. 119-120.

2 On the Paramorphosis of pyroxene to hornblende in rocks. Am. Jour. Sci., Oct., 1884, vol. 28, p.
259-268.

3 Mineralogy and Lithology of New Hampshire, pp. 57-206 ; PI. vii, fig. 1.

4 Geology of Wisconsin, 1880; vol. 3, p. 170. Am. Jour. Sci., July, 1883; vol. 26, p. 29. Geology of
Wisconsin, 1882; vol. 4, p. 662.

IDDINGS.]

MINERAL INTERGROWTHS.

611

fresh, glassy, and often pumiceous surface lavas makes it evident that
the two minerals have crystallized out of a molten magma at very
nearly the same time, and are not the result of metamorphism subse¬
quent to the consolidation of the rock.

In the glassy hornblende-pyroxene-andesites of Sepulchre Mountain
there are instances of the conjoint growth of liyperstliene, augite, and
brown hornblende. The pyroxene and hornblende are occasionally
grown together with an irregular line of demarcation between them.
The hornblende partly surrounds the pyroxene and appears to be the
younger mineral. In one instance a large individual of brown horn¬
blende is surrounded by a border of augite crystals in nearly parallel
orientation. The outline of the inclosed hornblende is irregular, but
exhibits no evidence of resorption and bears no magnetite. The other
hornblendes are idiomorphic.

In some of the other hornblende-pyroxene-andesites from this region
red porpliyritical hornblende is found to include pyroxene in irregularly
shaped grains and in different orientations, showing that in these cases
the hornblende crystallized after the pyroxene commenced to crystallize.

The most striking examples of these intergrowths that have come to
the writer’s notice and that furnish good subjects for illustration are
found in pumiceous glassy andesites from different parts of North and
Central America.

In a very glassy andesite from Santa Clara Canyon, New Mexico, de¬
scribed in a recent bulletin of the Survey,1 there is a fine instance of
the inclosure of hyiierstliene by dark brown hornblende, Fig. 4, PI. li.
The substance of the liyperstliene is very pure and resembles that of
the idiomorphic hypersthenes scattered through the colorless glass. The
form of the inclosed liyperstliene is very irregular. The inclosing
hornblende has crystallized directly upon the liyperstliene and forms
a border round it. The outline of the hornblende is only partly idiomor¬
phic, as it has grown against other individuals of hornblende in different
orientations. The inclosing hornblende is the same as the idiomor¬
phic hornblende scattered through the glass, and contains a great num¬
ber of crystals of magnetite.

In a glassy hornblende-andesite from the mouth of Silver Creek, Utah,2
the dark brown porpliyritical hornblendes inclose irregular grains of
pyroxene. One individual is especially interesting, as it incloses both
augite and liyperstliene. The irregular shapes of the inclosed pyroxenes
are shown in Fig. 5, PI. li. This is very similar to what is observed in
the diorites at Electric Peak, except that the hornblende is dark brown
instead of brownish green. Excellent examples of the same thing are
found in an andesite from Skellig Ridge, Elk Head Mountains, Colo¬
rado.3 The groundmass of this rock is filled with small pyroxenes and

1 On a group of volcanic rocks from the Tewan Mountains. New Mexico, and on the occurrence of
primary quartz in certain basalts. J. P. Iddings, Bull. U. S. Geol. Surv., No. 06, 1890.

2 Collection of the Fortieth Parallel Survey, No. 319 (20645).

3 Ibid., No. 323 (20487).

612

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

brown hornblendes, and the hornblende frequently incloses the pyrox¬
ene, as in Fig. G, PI. li. In this instance the hornblende surrounds the
augite.

In a glassy hornblende-pyroxene-andesite from Lassen Peak, Cal¬
ifornia,1 the intensely red hornblende occasionally surrounds the py¬
roxene. This is shown in cross section in Fig. 7, PI. li.

The same thing is observed in the pumiceous, glassy dacite from the
same locality.2 Irregularly shaped pyroxene forms the center of dark
greenish brown hornblende, which is distinctly idiomorphic, and has
the prism <xP, and both pinacoids, c/oPdo, c oPx ; this is shown in Fig. 8,
PI. li. Another instance of the intergrowth of pyroxene and dark
greenish brown hornblende from the same dacite is illustrated in Fig.
9, PI. li. The pyroxene in this case is hypersthene. The character of
the mtergrowtli is exactly the same as of those in the diorite at Electric
Peak. Such intergrowths are not rare occurrences in this glassy rock,
and are not confined to the pyroxene and hornblende. Irregular indi¬
viduals of olivine surrounded by the same kind of hornblende are fre¬
quently met with. Olivine surrounded by reddish brown hornblende
also occurs in a hornblende-pyroxene-andesite from Mount Rauier,
Washington.3 The same association of accessory olivine and inclosing
hornblende is found in a pumiceous glassy hornblende-pyroxene-ande¬
site from Salvador, Central America.4 Intergrowths of hornblende and
pyroxene occur in these rocks also.

In this connection it may be well to call attention to an exceptional
intergrowth that will illustrate how intimately minerals of altogether
different composition and habit may crystallize. It is the mutual pen¬
etration of hypersthene and plagioclase which form a porphyritical
group in a glassy hornbleude-pyroxene-andesite from Mount Hood,
Oregon.5 The two minerals are perfectly fresh and so oriented that the
striations of the plagioclase are parallel to the vertical crystallographic
axis of the hypersthene (Fig. 10, PI. li). The feldspar carries a great
amount of fine glass inclusions, in which there is occasionally a minute
crystal of magnetite. The hypersthene carries a few irregularly shaped
inclusions, which may be glass, but do not contain spherical gas bubbles.
It incloses numerous grains of magnetite and colorless prisms of apatite,
which are also scattered through the feldspar. The difference between
the association of the inclusions in each mineral is very noticeable.
The minerals evidently crystallized out of the same glassy magma in
which were scattered magnetite and apatite. The feldspar inclosed a
great deal of the glass in sharply defined cavities, and also inclosed
less apatite and magnetite. The hypersthene inclosed a much greater
amount of magnetite and apatite and a much smaller amount of glass,

1 Collection of the Fortieth Parallel Survey, No. 989 (22940).

2 Ibid., No. 994 (22946).

3 Ibid., No. 1067 (23043).

4 Volcanic Rocks of the Republic of Salvador, Central America. By Arnold Hague and J. P. Hi¬
dings. Am. Jour. Sci., July, 1886., vol. 32, pp, 26-31.

5 Collection of the Fortieth Parallel Survey, No. 1044 (23017).

U.S.GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. LI.

Geo.S Harms & Sons LithFhila

INTERGROWTHS OF MINERALS IN GLASSY ROCKS.

AND QUARTZ PHENOGRYSTS.

library

OF THE V

UN1VERSITY of ILLINOIS.

IDD1NGS.]

INTERGROWTH AND PARAMORPHISM.

613

which is scarcely recognizable as such. The boundary lines between
the plagioclase and hypersthene are irregular and in places distinct.
Where the two minerals wedge out against each other in the section
there is no line of demarkation between them, and the color of the hy¬
persthene fades out gradually.

From the cases of conjoint crystallization of various rock-making
minerals in pumiceous glassy lavas, Avhicli are of very widespread oc¬
currence, and from the similar intercrystallization of these minerals in
the holocrystalline stock rock at Electric Peak, where the various phases
of intergrowtli can be studied and its primary nature established, it is
apparent that caution should be used in referring other instances of par¬
allel intergrowth in coarsely granular rocks to paramorphic actions. It
would seem as though the presence of idiomorphic outlines would be
necessary to determine the primary or secondary nature of the mineral
in doubt where the rock exhibited no signs of secondary alteration. In
cases where augite is surrounded by or appears to pass into compact
hornblende, and neither mineral exhibits its characteristic crystal
outline in any imrt of the rock under investigation and the rock is
unaltered, the primary or secondary nature of either mineral may be
questioned ; for each mineral may be the result of the primary crystal¬
lization of the once molten magma, from which either of the two minerals
may separate before the other, or either may be the result of the alter¬
ation of the other, since the change of compact hornblende to compact
augite occurs in the rocks already described. It is probable, however,
that the study of a series of varieties of the rock in any case would
determine whether the intergrowth of the two minerals in a particular
case is the result of primary crystallization from a molten magma, or of
paramorphic action subsequent to the consolidation of the magma.

Alteration products. — Among the secondary minerals that are found
in some of the rock sections from Electric Peak is uralite. Its derivation
from original pyroxene is evident from the outline of the cross sections.
It is usually accompanied by other signs of alteration in the rock, and is
distinguishable from the primary brownish green hornblende. In some
sections there is secondary acicular ainphibole, light green and generally
in confused aggregates. Besides these are chlorite, epidote, quartz, and
calcite in the usual association. But as already observed, most of the
thin sections exhibit no signs of decomposition. As the processes of
decomposition are like those commonly observed in other rocks they
need no special comment.

11(6). Var ieties of the stock rocks in which the amount of the light colored
minerals ( feldspar and quartz ) exceeds that of the dark colored minerals
( ferromagnesian silicates) and in which the quartz is not excessive. — This
group presents a more feldspathic facies of the diorite, and includes
varieties that occur as lighter colored portions of the main mass without
any apparent relation to its form, others that appear to be contact facies
of the stock, and some that occur as dikes or veins in the main mass of
diorite.

614

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

They are not grouped according to their mode of occurrence, but on
mineralogical and microstructural grounds. They agree in having a
preponderance of feldspar, with considerable quartz, and a range of
ferromagnesian silicates that connects them with the diorites of Group
II (a). They resemble the main body of diorite in general habit, but
are lighter colored. The finer grained varieties approach the dike rocks
in microscopical characters, and are probably intimately related to them
geologically.

The hornblende, pyroxene, and biotite have the same characteristics
as those in the main body of diorites, and require no further comment.
They exhibit the same relationship to one another when found together.
But since the rocks brought within this group are not from the same
geological body, there is a greater variation in the relative proportion
of the ferromagnesian silicates, as will be seen in Tables Y and YI. The
feldspars are more alkaline than those in the main body of diorite and
have a somewhat different habit. The quartz also plays a slightly dif¬
ferent role. Owing to the difference in micro structure it is not possible
to compare the grain of these varieties directly with the grain of the less
feldspathic diorites. But they can be correlated approximately. The
coarsest grained variety, No. 215, of this group, grade 39, is from a
light colored vein 1 foot wide, cutting the darker colored diorite. It is
composed of broad plagioclase feldspars from lmm to 2mm long, with
numerous small and irregularly shaped quartz grains, located along the
line of junction of the feldspars; green and brown hornblende and
biotite are x>resent in very irregularly shaped individuals, besides some
magnetite and apatite. The hornblende is in part phenocrystic.

The feldspar has distinct zonal structure and polysynthetic twinning.
The extinction angles are not very high and may belong to oligoclase
or andesine. There are no characteristic inclusions. The quartz con¬
tains numerous fluid inclusions.

When the grain of the rock becomes smaller, as in the next three
grades, Nos. 214, 213, and 212, the feldspars stand out more prominently
as plienocrysts ; they are more nearly idiomorphic and there is a greater
amount of small grains of feldspar and quartz. The greater part of the
ferromagnesian silicates is found intergrown with these small grains of
feldspar and quartz, aud appears to be later than the crystallization of
the large feldspars. There are some porphyritical hornblendes which
appear to belong to an earlier period of crystallization than those just
mentioned. Small augites occur in No. 212, independent of the horn¬
blende. The next specimen in the table is clearly a more feldspathic
and quartzose facies of the main diorite. It exhibits the same struc¬
ture, and the pyroxene and hornblende are intergrown in the same
manner as in that rock. The next specimen in this series, No. 210, is
considerably finer grained, being about grade 27. It is from a con¬
tact with the sedimentary rocks. The microstructure is like that of the
coarser grained varieties, except that the large feldspars aud horn¬
blendes are distinctly idiomorphic, and the amount of granular material

IDDINGS. ]

QUARTZOSE DIORITE.

615

about equals that of the plienocrysts. There is an approach to idiomor-
phism on the part of some of the individuals of the groundmass, more
frequently the feldspars. Occasionally the same quartzes have a rudely
idiomorphic form, and yield sections that indicate their occurrence in
dihexahedral pyramids without the facies in the prism zone. The out¬
lines of these sections are not sharply crystallographic, but are indented
by the interference of adjacent and smaller feldspar grains. These
quartzes carry fluid inclusions and individualized inclusions which some¬
times have the shape of glass inclusions but appear to be feldspar. A
slightly different groundmass structure is developed in a light colored
apophysis of the stock, No. 209, grade 21. It is distinctly porphyri-
tic, with abundant feldspars and numerous brown hornblendes. The
groundmass in places exhibits a micropegmatitic structure.

The finest grained variety of contact facies in this group is No. 207,
from near the sedimentary rocks. It has a fine grained groundmass
similar to that of the last contact facies mentioned, No. 210, but is about
grade 20. The porphyritical feldspars and hornblendes are not so
abundant, and the latter are surrounded Dy shreds ol biotite which
appear to be nearly contemporaneous with the crystallization of the
groundmass.

In this group have been placed two specimens : One, No. 208, from a
dike on the southeast spur of Electric Peak, and the other, No. 206,
from the talus directly below the first one. They resemble the varieties
just described in the structure of the groundmass and in the occurrence
of the biotite as a product of the final crystallization of the magma.
They are slightly decomposed. From the same talus slope were col¬
lected two varieties, Nos. 204 and 205, which are very similar to those
just mentioned, but are fresher. It is not known whether they are
contact facies of the stock rock or dikes. A still finer grained variety,
No. 203, occurs in small dikes near the stock on the northeast spur.
The groundmass is a finely granular mixture of quartz and feldspar, with
phenocry stic plagioclases and hornblende, and irregular patches of biotite.

II (c). Varieties in which the amount of the light colored minerals {feld¬
spar and quartz) exceeds that of the dark colored minerals {ferromagnesian
silicates) and in which the quartz is abundant. — This group presents very
quartzose as well as feldspathic varieties of the diorite, which approach
granite in composition and structure. They are mostly coarse grained
dikes or veins that cut the main body of diorite and range from grade
35 to 40, Table VII. With them are placed the rocks from several
narrow dikes in the sedimentary strata, which appear to be quartzose
apophyses from the pyroxene-bearing magmas.

The rocks of this group are very similar to those of Group n (&), but
are richer in quartz and the majority of the feldspars appear to be more
alkaline; they have lower extinction angles and lower double refrac¬
tion, and do not exhibit so great a number of twin lamellae as the
plagioclases of the dark colored diorite. Zonal structure is pronounced
and the individuals are oftener equidimensional.

616

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Iii the coarsest grained varieties they are allotriomorpliic. There are
a number of different species of feldspars present in these rocks, and their
relative proportions vary. Occasionally there are those with abund¬
ant twin lamellae, high double refraction and extinction angles, which
are more nearly idiomorphic and rectangular. These appear to belong*
to the labradorite series. In some varieties of the rock there is consid¬
erable unstriated, allotriomorpliic feldspar, without zonal structure, and
with a distinct cleavage, that also bears thin lamellae of another feld¬
spar as inclusions parallel to the vertical axis, which is undoubtedly orth-
oclase. It is very abundant in No. 222, which is, in fact., a tine grained
granite. It is shown in PI. xlix, Fig. 1, natural size. This occurs as a
large body in the diorite, probably in the form of a dike or vein; it was
not found in place, but as large slabs among those of diorite at the base
of the high mass of diorite needles on the northeast spur of Electric
Peak. The other varieties are more properly quartz-diorites.

In the coarsest varieties of this group the ferromagnesian silicates
are biotite and hornblende, with no pyroxene. The biotite is in excess
of the hornblende.

II (c '). The remaining rocks in this group are from narrow apophyses
in the immediate vicinity of the main stock. They are rich in quartz,
but carry more basic plagioclases aud a variable amount of augite, be¬
sides biotite and hornblende. They appear to be quartzose facies of the
pyroxene-diorite of the main stock and may be contemporaneous off¬
shoots from it. No such variety of rock has yet been found cutting the
main mass of the diorite.

The microstructure of Nos. 220 and 221 is somewhat finer grained
than that of Nos. 222, 223, and 224; the relative amounts and the size
of the quartz and feldspar are about the same. In No. 221 the biotite
is largely in excess of the augite which occurs in small crystals and
grains. Hornblende is entirely absent. In No. 220 there is very little
pyroxene, more hornblende and still more biotite.

A much finer grained variety, No. 219, from the same locality is grade
25; it is distinctly porphyritic. The groundmass is composed of small
grains of quartz and feldspar, through which are scattered abundant
plagioclases with irregular outlines, high extinction angles and the
dust-like inclusions that characterize the labradorites of the coarse
grained diorite. There are large porpliyritical hornblendes and con¬
siderable biotite with a small amount of pyroxene inclosed in the horn¬
blende.

A very fine grained variety, Nos. 216, 217, and 218, about grades
19 and 24, resembles No. 221 in mineral composition. The ferromag¬
nesian silicates are biotite and some augite. The groundmass is com¬
posed of small grains of quartz and feldspar. The distinguishing
feature of the groundmass of the fine grained varieties of these quartz¬
ose rocks is the granular structure; that of the less quartzose ones is
the aggregation of lath-shaped feldspars.

IDDINGS.]

QUARTZ PHENOCRYSTS.

617

III. QUARTZ-MICA-DIORITE-PORPHYRITE.

The last magma to break through the conduit of Electric Peak was
that of the quartz-mica-diorite-porphyrite. It forms a broad stock cut¬
ting up through the body of the diorite, wedging out to the north, and
sending a number of narrow dikes into the sedimentary strata to the
southwest. The rock is light gray to white, with abundant small
phenocrysts of feldspar, quartz, and biotite. Its habit is similar to that
of the other porphyrites, and is produced by the great number of
small phenocrysts. The groundmass is scarcely recognizable as such
macroscopically, except in the finest grained varieties. The rock ap¬
pears to be evenly granular in hand specimens. The coarsest grained
varieties are from the stock, the finest grained from the narrow dikes
on the southeast spur of Electric Peak. The varieties are arranged in
Table VIII, column III, according to their grade of crystallization.

Besides biotite there is a little hornblende, which is a prominent con¬
stituent of one modification of the rock, shown in Fig. 2, PI. xlix,
but is almost entirely wanting in the greater portion of the rock. It
occurs as small inclusions in some of the large feldspars. In most of
the specimens collected the biotite is partly chloritized and the feld¬
spars are more or less altered.

The rock is intermediate, between quartz-diorite-porphyrite and gran¬
ite-porphyry. It varies slightly in mineral composition as well as in
chemical composition, and the extremes would be classed under these
two heads.

The finest grained varieties which occur in the narrow dikes consist
of a microcrystalline groundmass of irregular grains, whose exact nature
can not be determined optically, but which are undoubtedly quartz and
feldspar, as these minerals make up the groundmass of the coarser
grained varieties. Through this groundmass are scattered phenocrysts
of feldspar and quartz, with biotite and occasionally hornblende. The
feldspar is mostly plagioclase, with polysynthetic twinning, and appears
to belong to the oligoclase series. A few individuals exhibit no striations
and may be orthoclase. Their form is distinctly idiomorphic when the
grain of the groundmass is extremely fine, but where this is somewhat
larger the outline of the feldspar section is not so sharp.

The porphyritical quartz is in smaller individuals than the feldspar.
Most of them exhibit straight edged crystallographic outlines, that
belong to diliexahedral pyramids, possibly with small prism faces.
Others are rounded more or less completely. Straight edged and rounded
grains occur indiscriminately through the rock and in the same rock
section. (PI. li, Fig. 1.) Some individuals exhibit irregular outlines
occasioned by bays or pockets of the groundmass penetrating the quartz
substance. These pockets are extremely abundant around some indi¬
viduals and are entirely absent from others. They occur both iu straight
edged and rounded individuals. They are often associated with numer¬
ous microcrystalline inclusions that are located along the margin of the
quartzes. From their mode of occurrence in otherwise idiomorphic

618

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

quartzes it seems probable that in these instances they are forms of
original inclusions and not the result of a corrosive action of the magma on
the idiomorphic quartzes. There are also microcrystalline diliexahedral
inclusions within the quartzes, and gas and fluid inclusions.

In the finest grained varieties of this rock the outline of the quartz
individuals is sharply defined against the grouudmass, but in the
slightly coarser grained varieties this is not the case with all of the
individuals. Some have rough surfaces which are evidently produced
by the substance of the porphyritical quartz extending irregularly into
the grouudmass. In some cases there is a narrow border of ground-
mass around the quartz, part of which extinguishes light in unison
with the porphyritical quartz. The quartz in this border of ground-
mass is evidently oriented parallel to the large quartz grain.

The biotite in these varieties of the rock is almost completely decom¬
posed to chlorite with some epidote and rutile needles. The rock con¬
tains a few grains of magnetite and crystals of apatite.

The quartz-miea-diorite-porphyrite occurring in the stock is much
coarser grained than that just described from the narrow dikes. It is
much richer in phenocrysts, which are larger and so crowded together that
there is very little groundmass between them. The coarsest grained
variety is about grade 35. The feldspars have the same characters as
those just described. The quartz is particularly interesting; some
individuals are quite large, and the sections of these are usually sharp
edged ; they are partly rounded, partly crystallographically bounded,
the two forms occurring together in the same thin section. The greater
number of quartzes are irregularly outlined, with an approach to a
diliexahedral shape, which is less noticeable as the groundmass becomes
coarser grained. The inclusions are the same as in the quartzes of the
finest grained varieties. These inclusions are sometimes arranged in a
zone which marks a central core of idiomorphic quartz, the outer por¬
tion of the individual being less regularly defined and extending into the
surrounding groundmass a short distance. In the coarsest grained varie¬
ties the forms of most of the quartzes are very irregular and allotriomor-
phic, the nature of their inclusions being about the same. A few are
somewhat idiomorphic. The small grains of quartz in the groundmass
are wholly allotriomorphic. The variation in the quartzes is illustrated
by Figs. 2 and 3, PI. li, the former occurring in a medium grained
variety, No. 231, grade 21, and the latter in the coarsest grained
form, No. 238, grade 35. The quartz individual represented by Fig.
3 exhibits only a slight approach to a diliexahedral shape. It is
drawn with its principal axis, c, in the vertical position, which may be
recognized in the drawing by the position of several diliexahedral
inclusions.

It is evident that in this rock the porphyritical quartzes were the
last of the phenocrysts to crystallize and that their crystallization in
the coarser grained varieties continued into the period of the crystalli¬
zation of the groundmass with no marked evidence of interruption.

IDDINGS.]

MINERAL VARIATION OF THE DIKE ROCKS.

619

GENERAL CONSIDERATION OF THE MINERAL AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF TIIE

INTRUSIVE ROCKS; THEIR VARIABILITY AND OVERLAPPING, AND THE ABSENCE OF

DEFINITE TYPES.

Mineral composition. — The accompanying tables are designed to
express some of the variations that exist in the rocks under investiga¬
tion. They are, of course, approximate determinations in every case,
and represent the judgment of the writer. It is probable that another
observer might differ, in particular instances, as to the position of a
rock in any of the columns, but this difference would not be very mate¬
rial and would not affect the general result.

Iu considering the group of dike rocks described under Group I and
the dikes of Group III the most essential variation is among the pheno-
crystic minerals and in the accompanying groundmass structures, the
variations in the grain of the groundmass being of secondary impor¬
tance. They have, therefore, been arranged in Table III according to
the variable ferromagnesian phenocrysts they contain, no account be¬
ing taken of the feldspars since their variation is much less marked
and not easily recognized. It is to be remembered that they are pres¬
ent in all of the rocks, and are more basic in the basic rocks than in
the acidic.

In Table III no account is taken of the degree of crystallization.
This is expressed in Table IY, where the same rocks are correlated as
closely as possible according to the grain of the groundmass, the finest
grained being at the top and the coarsest at the bottom of the table.

Table III. — Mineral variation in the dike rocks of Electric Peak.

Mineral

groups.

Specimen

numbers.

Phenocrysts other than feldspar.

Pyroxene.

Horn blende.

Biotite.

Quartz.

, c

136

d> . 1

137

much.

d, .

138

d„

139

140

d4 .

141

some.

142

143

144

145

146

^6 .

147

148

149

little.

150

fl7 ...<

151

u7 . j

152

153

154

155

d8 .

157

158

160

dg .

161

much.

159

little.

much .

162

little.

much.

little.

163

little.

much.

164

little.

much.

165

little.

much.

166

little.

much.

167

little.

much.

168

little.

much.

169

little.

much.

620

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

From Table III it is seen that the dike rocks vary in mineral composi¬
tion from acidic rocks with much porphyritical quartz and biotite and
very little hornblende, through intermediate rocks with much porphy-
ritical biotite and hornblende, to basic rocks with pyroxene and little
or no porphyritical hornblende and biotite, but which are more coarsely
crystalline than the more acid rocks and contain some biotite which
appears to belong to the period of final consolidation and to be related
to the biotite in the diorites. The gradual nature of the transition from
one extreme to the other is apparent.

The impossibility and impracticability of considering certain rocks as
definite types with which to compare other rocks in the region is also
evident when it is observed that the mineralogical variation takes place
within certain limits in one rock body (specimens Nos. 159, 160, 161,
154, and 151 are from the same dike) ; and that what appears to be a
mineralogical facies of one particular rock body is the characteristic
combination of another, and its facies is something different. Field
observation shows that in this locality the greater number of dikes are
composed of rocks carrying variable percentages of porphyritical horn¬
blende and biotite, and that the other varieties are less numerous.
In another region other varieties predominate. The chemical variations
which are indicated by the silica percentages range from 57T2 in sub¬
division d3 to 61-85 in d7, and probably reach 69-00 in du. They indi¬
cate the correspondence between the mineralogical and chemical varia¬
tions for this group of rocks.

Table IV. — Grades of crystallization of the dike rocks of Electric Peak.

Grades
of crys¬
talliza¬
tion.

Mineralogical grouping indicated in Table III.

dt ! d2

d4 d5

dio

d„

6 . . .

163
164, 165
166, 167
168, 169

7 ....

144

. 142

9 .

145, 146
147
148, 149

162

150

11 .

159. 160
161

12 .

. 143

153, 154
155
156, 157
158

. ..

13 .

14. . .

151, 152

16 .

139

19 .

136

137

140, 141 .

20 .

25 .

138

Table I Y expresses the range in degree of crystallization of the ground-
mass of these rocks, which are arranged in columns corresponding to
the mineralogical grouping of Table III. It is to be remarked that the
specimens were collected from different sized dikes and from different
parts of the dikes, so that the variations in grain can not be compared
very closely with the mineral composition. But when the size of the
dikes in each case is taken into consideration it becomes even more
evident than from the table that the coarseness of grain bears a very
considerable relation to the chemical composition of the rock. The

GROUNDMASS OF THE DIKE ROCKS.

621

variation in grain between the sides and center of a dike and be¬
tween dikes of different widths, for rocks of nearly the same composi¬
tion, is not so great as the variation between rocks of different composi¬
tion where the size of the dikes in which they occur is somewhat simi¬
lar. Thus, specimen No. 137 is from the center of a 4-foot dike, ana
No. 136 from the contact wall of the same, and specimen No. 151 is from
the center of an 8-foot dike, and Nos. 161 and 154 from the contact
walls of the same; Nos. 168 and 169 are from 4-foot dikes, and No.
167 from a 2-foot dike. They all occur at nearly the same altitude, but
it is possible that the pyroxene-bearing rock, No. 137, may have been
intruded in rocks which were more heated at the time of its intrusion
and so have acquired its decree of crystallization through slower cool¬
ing, but this is not so likely to have happened in the case of rock No. 138,
which is in the same part of the mountain as No. 139, but is in a dike
10 feet wide and is very much coarser grained than No. 137. (See Table
YI.)

The groundmass of the rock with porphyritical quartz and biotite,
No. 169, is made up of minute grains of quartz and feldspar about
0-015mm in diameter, while the groundmass of pyroxene-bearing variety,
No. 137, is made up of lath-shaped and irregularly shaped feldspar
about 0-10 mm to 0T4lum in length, and the groundmass of No. 138 is com¬
posed of lath-shaped feldspars 0-5mm to 0-7mm in length.

The character of the groundmass changes from an even granular
structure in the acidic rocks, through one made up of irregular grains
and lath-shaped feldspars in the intermediate rocks, to an aggregation
of lath-shaped feldspars with almost no irregular grains in the basic
varieties.

The tendency of basic rocks to crystallize more completely and with
larger groundmass crystals than acidic rocks is constantly observed
among the effusive rocks, such as basalts, andesites, and rhyolites.
The same law appears to obtain among the intrusive rocks. It is of
course necessary to compare rocks that appear to have crystallized un¬
der very nearly the same physical conditions.

The rocks of Group II have been described in greater detail on ac¬
count of their number and importance and have been subdivided into
three subgroups, II (a), II (b), II (c), page 597. The tables presenting
the results of this part of the work have a different form and are arranged
separately for each subdivision. They are Tables Y, YI, and YII.

622

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Table V. — Mineralogical variation among the diorites of Group 11(a).

Specimen

number.

Percentage
of silica.

Amount of quartz.

Relative amount of pyroxene
and hornblende.

Relative amount of pyroxene,
hornblende, and biotite.

Lit¬

tle.

Mod¬

erate.

Con¬

sider¬

able.

Much.

P ■

p>h.

p=h.

p<h.

(ph).

( ph)>b .

(. ph)=b .

(ph)<b.

170

171

57-38

171

172

173

174

175

176

61 -22

176

177

58 -05

177

178

56 -33

178

179

180

58-10

180

181

182

183

184

185

58-11

185

186

58 -87

186

187

188

18H

188

189

55 -64

189

190

191

192

193

194

*194

194

195

196

197

56-28

197

198

199

53-72

199

*199

199

200

55 -23

200

201

202

* The hornblende in these rocks is in part secondary, pyroxene may have been present originally.

Table VI. — Mineralogical variation among the diorites of Group II (6).

® u

a ®

to .
g

Amount of quartz.

Relative amount of pyroxene
and hornblende.

Relative amount of pyroxene,
hornblende, and biotite.

o S

<D 3

c 3

® °

Lit¬

tle.

Mod¬

erate.

Con¬

sider¬

able.

Much.

P-

p>h.

p=h.

p<h.

(ph).

( ph)>b .

(ph)=b.

(ph)<b.

203

204

205

65 -60

205

206

207

65-94

207

208

209

63-78

209

210

211

64 -07

211

*211

211

212

1212

212

213

65 11

213

214

215

64-85

215

* This rock belongs with 192, resembles it in structure and character, but is higher in silica and
feldspar.

t An exceptional variety, from talus.

IDD1NGS.]

EXPLANATION OF TABLES.

623

Table VII. — Mineralogical variation among the diorites of Group //(c).

Specimen

number.

Percentage
of silica.

Amount of quartz.

Relative amount of pyroxene
and hornblende.

Relative amount of pyroxene,
hornblende, and biotite.

Lit¬

tle.

Mod¬

erate.

Con¬

sider¬

able.

Much.

p>h.

p=h.

p<h.

(ph).

( ph)>h .

(. ph)=b .

(ph)<b.

216

+21

9.1

217

218

219

65 -48

219

220

65-80

220

. 220

221

9.91

222

223

67 -54

223

224

225

....

225

226

227

66 -05

227

* The first six rocks in this group are closely related to the main mass of the diorite of Group II (a).

Table V presents those varieties of the stock rocks in which the
amount of the ferromagnesian silicates about equals that of the feld¬
spar and quartz combined. There is no distinction made as to whether
the crystals occur as phenocrysts or not. They are arranged in a series
according to their degree of crystallization, the finest grained being at the
top, the value of the degrees of crystallization having been already ex¬
plained (p.599). The silica percentage is given in all cases where it has
been determined. In the table an attempt is made to express the rela¬
tive amounts of the quartz, of the hornblende and pyroxene, and of the
biotite and hornblende and pyroxene. The’relative amount of feldspar
is not expressed. In a general way it varies inversely as the amount of
quartz for this subgroup. The columns under the different divisions
of the table express certain relations of the minerals approximately.
Under the divisions of quartz, the terms “little,” “moderate,” “consid¬
erable,” “much,” are only used as comparative terms applicable to this
group of rocks throughout its three subdivisions, II (a), II (&), II (c), and
have no reference to the relative amount of quartz which might be found
in another suite of rocks. Consequently what would be considered
“much” quartz in these rocks might only be a moderate amount for an¬
other series.

Under the division which shows the relative amounts of pyroxene
and hornblende in each rock, the first column, “p,” indicates that there
is pyroxene and no hornblende ; the next column, that the pyroxene is
in excess of the hornblende; the third, that they are equal, and so on.
The relative amounts of pyroxene or of hornblende in any two varieties
of the rock is not indicated directly. It can be ascertained roughly by
considering that in this subgroup the sum of the pyroxene, hornblende,
and biotite is nearly constant.

In the next division of the table the amount of the biotite is com¬
pared with that of the pyroxene and hornblende combined, in the man¬
ner already explained for the previous division.

624

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

The first fact brought out by a study of this table is the variability
of the quartz percentage, which does not appear to hold a very definite
relation to the silica percentage, as in the case of Nos. 185 and 180. But
it is observed in studying the thin sections that the quartz is not so
noticeable in the fine grained varieties as in the coarse grained ones,
and may therefore be either overlooked or possibly not so strongly
developed. Thus the coarse grained varieties with little quartz are
lower in silica than the fine grained varieties with little quartz. (Com¬
pare Nos. 199 and 200 with Nos. 176, 177, and 178.) Itis, of course, evi¬
dent that in rocks with variable percentages of the essential minerals
which are all silicates there can be no rigid relation between the pro¬
portion of any one of these minerals and the silica percentage of the rock
within the narrow range of chemical variation that occurs in this group.
In it the silica does not vary 7 per cent, and the amount of the other
chemical constituents are the controlling chemical factors. This will
be discussed more fully when the chemical composition of the rocks is
considered.

The most regular variation is in the relative proportions of pyroxene
and hornblende. There is a definite increase in the amount of horn¬
blende and decrease in that of pyroxene as the rock becomes coarser
grained. This is specially noticeable in those specimens forming series
from one spot, Nos. 172, 173, 174, 175, 183, and 191, and Nos. 181, 182,
185, 188, and 193. The variation in the relative amount of biotite is not
so marked, but there is a slight increase from the fine grained to the
coarse grained end of the series.

The irregularities in the variations of the different minerals could be
better understood if the chemical composition of all of the different
varieties of the rocks were known, but such an investigation is not
practicable. The rocks of this subgroup may be classed among the
pyroxene-diorites and quartz-pyroxene-diorites. They carry consider¬
able biotite, and pass into quartz-mica-diorite at one end of the series
and into pyroxene-porphyrite at the other.

Tables VI and VII include those varieties of rock in which the amount
of feldspar and quartz together exceeds that of the ferromagnesian
silicates, and Table YII includes those varieties particularly rich in
quartz.

The silica percentage is considerably higher in these rocks than in
those of the previous subgroup. The quartz is more uniform, and on
the whole is higher. It is very considerably higher in Subgroup II (c).
Pyroxene is absent from most of the varieties, but occurs in small amounts
without hornblende in a few instances already noticed. Biotite is more
variable in Subgroup II ( b ) than in II (c), where it is the predominant
ferromagnesian silicate.

The relation of quartz, biotite, hornblende, and pyroxene to the chem¬
ical composition of the different varieties of this series of rocks is not
so definite as in the case of the group of dike rocks. In general, quartz

1DDINGS.]

GRADES OF CRYSTALLIZATION.

625

and biotite are more abundant in the more acidic varieties of the coarse
grained rocks, but they both appear in the basic varieties when they
are coarsely crystalline. The relations of horneblende and pyroxene
to the chemical composition of rocks is not elucidated in any way by
the study of this group of rocks. It is evident, however, that in the
case of the intrusive rocks of this region hornblende is developed to a
greater extent in the basic rocks as they are coarser grained, and that
pyroxene is more abundant in the liner grained forms than in the
coarser.

The mineral composition of the quartz-mica-diorite-porphyrite, Group
III, is very uniform, and needs no tabulation. It contains very much
quartz, abundant biotite, and almost no hornblende; the greater part of
the rock is more siliceous than the main body of the diorite, and reaches
69-24 per cent of silica, but a facies of it, which is richer in hornblende
than the body of the rock, has only 65-97 per cent of silica.

Table VIII. — Grades of crystallization of the dike and stock rocks of Electric Peak.

Grade.

II (a).

11(5).

II (a).

III.

dl-io.

*«•

$2-

«3-

*4 and dn.

6 .

163
164, 165
166, 167

168, 169

7 .

144
142
( 143

l 145, 146
147, 150
( 148, 149
\ 159, 160
( 143, 153
l 154, 161
155
f 151, 152
i 156, 157

8 .

9 .

10 .

11 .

12 .

13 .

170

171

172

173

174

14 .

15 .

16 .

139, 158

17 .

203
204, 205

206

207, 208
209

18 .

19 .

( 136

X 140, 141
137

216, 217

20 .

228, 229
230, 231
232, 233
234, 235

236

237

21 .

22 .

175

176
177, 178

23 .

24 .

218

219

25 .

138

26. ..

179, 180
181
182
183
184, 185
186, 187
188
( 189

\ 190, 191

192

193

27 .

210

28 .

29 ..

30 .

31..

32 .

33 ..

34...

211

212

213

35 .

220

221

C 222

\ 223, 224

238

36 .

37 .

194

195

196

197

198

199

200
201
202

38 .

214

215

39...

40. ..

C 225

l 226, 227

41 .

42 .

43 .

44.. .

45 .

12 GEOL

6 26

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Table VIII expresses tlie relative degree of crystallization of all the
intrusive rocks collected from the stock and dikes of Electric Peak.
They are arranged in the groups already described. The breaks in the
different columns do not signify breaks in the gradation of crystalli¬
zation in the rock bodies in the field, bnt simply that the specimens
collected are not from all the different structural phases of the differ¬
ent rocks. However, the clustering of the numbers in particular parts
of the scale indicates the prevailing grain of the rocks as they are ex¬
posed at the present time.

It is not possible to draw a line of demarcation anywhere in the scale
based on the degree of crystallization between rocks that occur in nar¬
row dikes and those that form parts of much larger bodies. A relation
between the degree of crystallization and the size of the rock body does
not at first appear when all of these occurrences are considered together.
The very important influence of several other factors, however, becomes
apparent. One is the chemical character of the magma, the more basic
magmas tending to crystallize coarser than more siliceous ones under
similar physical conditions. Another factor is the previous temperature
of the rocks into which the molten magmas were injected, and the con¬
sequent differences in the rate of cooling which the molten magmas
experience. There may also be other factors which influence the crys¬
tallization in certain cases, but they are not evident in the occurrences
at Electric Peak. In this locality the chief factor influencing the crys¬
tallization appears to have been the temperature of the inclosing rocks
at the time of the different intrusions. The next most influential factor
appears to have been the chemical character of the magma itself, and
the third the size of the intruded mass. In another region the relative
importance of these factors may be different.

Chemical composition. — The chemical composition of the intrusive
rocks at Electric Peak is shown by the analyses in Table IX. Nos. 197,
171, 177, 215, 213, 205, 233, 227, 223, and 230 were made by Mr. J. E.
Whitfield; Nos. 176 and 211 were made by Mr. W. H. Melville. All
are from rocks occurring in the stock and its immediate apophyses.
They represent the composition of various forms of the diorite and
diorite-porphyrite. The first four analyses, Nos. 197, 171, 177, and 176,
are from the main body of the stock, and belong to Subgroup II (a).
The next four analyses, Nos. 211, 215, 213, and 205, are from facies of
the main body of the diorite and from one of the lighter colored veins
or dikes which traverse it. They belong to Subgroup II ( b ). Two
more facies of the main stock are represented by analyses Nos. 227 and
223. They are quite siliceous, and belong to Subgroup II (c). Analyses
Nos. 233 and 230 are from the large body of quartz -mica-diorite-
porphyrite, the first being a basic facies of it, and the second corre¬
sponding more nearly to the general character of the body of the rock.

IDDINGS.]

CHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS

627

Table IX. — Chemical analyses of intrusive rocks from Electric Peak.

Specimen No.

197

171

177

176

211

215

213

205

233

227

223

230

SiO, .

56. 28

57. 38

58. 05

61. 22

64. 07

64. 85

65.11

65. 60

65. 97

66. 05

67.54

69.24

TiO* .

.84

trace

1.05

.45

.91

.71

.75

.42

.34

.80

.65

14. 23

16. 86

18. 00

16.14

15. 82

16. 57

16.21

17.01

16. 53

16. 96

17.02

15.30

Fe20* .

4. 69

2. 49

3. 01

3. 40

2. 10

1.06

.95

2. 59

2. 97

1.72

FeO .

4. 05

5. 17

4.56

2. 58

1.44

2.15

3. 19

2.76

1.72

1.38

.34

.69

NiO .

.09

.05

MnO .

.16

trace

none

trace

none

trace

CaO .

7. 94

7. 32

6.17

5.46

4.43

4. 01

3. 97

3.72

3. 37

2. 94

2. 98

MgO .

6. 37

5. 51

3.55

4.21

3.39

2. 14

2.57

1.49

2. 11

2. 08

1.51

.95

Li20 .

. 01

. 39

.04

.03

. 09

none

.03

none

NajO .

2. 98

3. 33

3. 64

4.48

4.06

3.71

4.00

4.36

3.41

4.20

4.62

4.46

K20 .

1.23

1.45

2.18

1.87

2. 27

3.10

2.51

2, 36

2. 67

2.53

2. 28

2. 52

P205 .

.40

trace

. 17

.25

.18

.14

.02

.16

trace

S03 .

. 21

. 07

trace

.13

.03

.26

.27

Cl .

. 17

none

.09

trace

.16

trace

HjO .

.93

.42

.86

.44

.52

.35

.94

.59

1. 23

.69

.56

1.30

100. 28

100. 70

100. 79

100. 36

100. 08

100. 03

100. 33

100. 38

100. 33

100. 22

101.01

100. 08

. 04

.04

.02

.03

100. 24

100. 66

100. 31

100. 98

Table X. — Silica percentages of the rocks from Electric Peak.

Sheet

rocks.

Dike and stock rocks.

Si02.

11(a).

H(6).

11(c).

53. 72

55. 23

55. 64

56. 28

56. 33

57. 12

57. 38

58. 05

58. 10

58. 11

58.11

58. 49

58. 87

59.64

59. 64

60. 54

60. 56

60. 89

61.50

61. 50

61. 85

61.85

63.01

63. 78

63.78

64. 85

65. 11

65.11

65.48

65. 48

65. 60

65. 80

65. 94

65. 97

66. 05

67.54

67. 54

69.24

Fio. 79.— Variation of silica percentages.

628

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN. .

The silica percentages of a number of varieties of these rocks were
determined and are given in Table X, together witli those from the
complete analyses. In a measure they supplement these analyses and
demonstrate what is evident from the microscopical study of the thin
sections, namely: That the diorites and porphyrites pass through all
possible gradations from one extreme to the other. The character of
this transition is shown by the diagram, Fig. 79, in which each
determination is given the same weight, the series is arranged ac¬
cording to the increase of silica, and the silica percentages are plotted
as ordinates.

In Table X the percentages are all placed in the extreme right-hand
column, and also in separate columns corresponding to the groups de¬
scribed in the first part of the paper. From this it is seen that the main
body of the diorite varies from 53*72 to 60*56 per cent of silica, and
in certain contact facies reaches 67*54 per cent. The dikes of later
rocks related to the diorite and cutting the main body of the stock
range from 63*78 to 69*24 per cent.

In the various bodies of magma that have followed one another
through the conduit at Electric Peak, there is a variation in chemical
composition in each, the different series of changes overlapping one
another. Thus the average chemical composition of each subgroup of
varieties shifts somewhat, and is more basic for one than another. But
the end varieties of each subgroup overlap, so that the most basic mod¬
ification of the more acidic group is more basic than the most acidic end
of the more basic group which immediately preceded it.

Since the rocks of Group I belong to outlying dikes of the main stock
and are contemporaneous with it, their silica percentages may be placed
in the proper subgroup of the stock rocks, making subgroups II (a) and
II (5) practically continuous. It appears from Table X that the suc¬
cession of magmas which came up through the vertical fissures was
from a basic one to more and more acidic ones, and that the previous
intrusions which formed the sheet rocks were of a magma of medium
chemical composition.

The variations of the other chemical constituents of these rocks are
best comprehended by comparing their molecular proportions. This
has been done graphically in the accompanying diagram, Fig. 80, in
which the molecular proportions of the principal oxides are plotted as
ordinates, those of the silica being taken as abscissas. The origin of
abscissas is located some distance to the left.

The first impression derived from the diagram is that of the irregu¬
larity of the variations in all the oxides besides silica, especially in the
magnesia. Moreover, these variations appear to be independent of one
another. But this apparent independence disappears on closer study.
The most striking evidence of connection between the molecular propor¬
tions exists in the case of the two oxides of iron ; the ferrous and ferric
oxides are noticeably inversely proportional to each other, an increase

IDDINGS.]

MOLECULAR VARIATION.

629

of ferrous oxide being accompanied by a decrease of ferric oxide. The
total amount of iron varies irregularly, decreasing from the basic to the
acidic end of the series. While each of the iron oxides is quite inde¬
pendent of the magnesia, it is found upon reducing all the iron to the
ferrous state that there is the greatest accord between the iron and
magnesia, both varying in like directions and to nearly the same extent.
The magnesia drops rapidly at first, and is very erratic in the more
siliceous end of the series, where it becomes very low.

The most regular variation is in the lime, which decreases steadily
from the basic to the acidic end of the series. It exhibits little or no
connection with the other constituents. The molecular proportion of

the alumina, though quite irregular between certain limits, maintains a
uniformly high position, and is much greater than any one of the other
constituents except silica. At the extreme basic end of the scale, how¬
ever, it is equaled by both the magnesia and lime. The alkalies are
most like the alumina in their variations, and remain very nearly uni¬
form, increasing somewhat toward the acidic end of the series. The
soda molecules are more than twice as numerous as those of potash,
which is one of the most noticeable characteristics of the rocks of this
region. In the basic end of the series the alkalies vary together in the
same direction, while in the more siliceous end they vary in opposite
directions. There is a marked accordance between the soda and alu¬
mina, both varying in the same direction, with one exception, though
not to the same extent. There is a more strongly marked discordance

630

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

between the alumina and magnesia, which, with one exception, vary in
opposite directions.

These irregular variations take place not only among allied varieties
of rocks, but even in different parts of one and the same rock body.
They correspond to variations in the proportions of the essential min¬
erals. Since the essential minerals of this group of rocks are, the feld¬
spars, pyroxenes, amphiboles, mica, quartz, and magnetite, one or more
of which may be absent from a particular form of the rock ; and since
there is a number of complex molecules into which any one of these
oxide molecules enters, it is evident that the variations among the oxide
molecules must be mutually dependent. Thus, while most of the alu¬
mina enters into the feldspars, a portion of it enters into the ferro-
magnesian silicates. The alkalies are mostly found in the feldspars,
but a little of the soda takes part in the augites and hornblendes, and
considerable of the potash in the biotites. The lime is an important
factor in both these groups of minerals; it is most abundant in the
plagioclases and diminishes as the feldspars become more alkaline; it
abounds in augite and to a less extent in hornblende, and is almost ab¬
sent from liypersthene and biotite. The iron and magnesian molecules,
however, have no part in the composition of the feldspars, and are con¬
fined to the ferromagnesian minerals. Besides the more complex min¬
erals there are the simple oxides, magnetite and quartz. They act as com¬
pensators to regulate the exhaustion of the oxide molecules in the
magma.

These considerations render more comprehensible the variations ex¬
pressed in the diagram, Fig. 80. The inverse relation between the
alumina and magnesia corresponds to variations in the molecules of
feldspars and of the ferromagnesian silicates ; an increase of the former
being accompanied by a decrease of the latter.

The independently uniform variation in the lime molecules is consist¬
ent with the fact that they enter so largely into both the feldspars and
ferromagnesian silicates. Their steady diminution from the basic to
the acidic end of the series is in accord with the decrease in the amount
of augite and hornblende, and the increase in the alkali feldspars, which
is indicated by the increase of soda and potash molecules.

The reciprocal relation between the ferrous and ferric oxides indicates
the variable oxidation of preexisting molecules, which were probably
ferrous oxide; and, since the hornblende and biotite are the silicate
minerals carrying the greatest percentage of ferric iron, the variation in
the oxidation of the iron is naturally in accord very largely with the
amount of these minerals in the rock. This is most significant from its
bearing on the question of the development of hornblende and biotite
in the coarser grained forms of these rocks, and from its possible con¬
nection with the work of mineralizing agents.

If we were acquainted with the exact chemical composition of each
of the essential minerals in these rocks, we could obtain a more precise

IDDINGS.]

ORDER OF CRYSTALLIZATION.

631

notion of the interdependence of the component molecules of the
magma, since we know the order in which these minerals began to crys¬
tallize in the granular rocks. But the essential minerals in the diorites
are so intimately intergrown that it would be an extremely difficult, if
not an impossible, matter to separate them mechanically for chemical
analysis. It is possible, however, to arrive at some general conclusions
by considering the approximate composition of the minerals, which may
be derived from the analyses of similar occurrences.

Since the essential minerals of the diorites are magnetite, liypersthene,
augite, hornblende, biotite, labradorite, oligoclase, ortlioclase, and
quartz, they may be placed in two series ; one, including those bearing
iron and magnesia; the other, being free from both. The terms labra¬
dorite and oligoclase include all the varieties of the lime- soda feldspars
within the limits of these species in the Tschermak sense.

When arranged in the order in which they began to crystallize, the
first series becomes magnetite, liypersthene, augite, hornblende, and
biotite ; the second series is labradorite, oligoclase, ortlioclase and
quartz. Assuming the chemical composition of these minerals to be
within the limits of similar varieties in other localities, which is of course
only a rough approximation, and comparing their molecular proportions,
we obtain the data presented in Table XI, very small quantities of dif¬
ferent oxides having been omitted.

Table XI. — Molecular proportions in the essential minerals of the diorite.

Magnetite . . .
Hypersthene

Augite .

Hornblende. .
Biotite .

Labradorite
Oligoclase ..
Ortnoclase . .
Quartz .

Magnetite ...
Hypersthene

Augite .

Labradorite .
Hornblende. .

Biotite .

Oligoclase . . .
Ortlioclase . . .
Quartz .

Molecular proportions.

Si02

86-83

83-78

78-66

66-58

103

106

166

86-83

83-78

78-66

66-58

103

106

166

F 62O3

FeO

MgO

CaO

ALA

Na/)

k2o

(*>

3-6

7-14

30-37

32-39

3-6

9-15

32-37

16-21

10-13

(*)

7-10

3-12

<*)

22-60

10-18

(*>

(*)

<t)

<*)

7-14

30-37

32-39

3-6

9-15

32-37

16-21

10 13

7-10

3-12

(*)

22-60

10-18

<*)

* Occasionally in small amounts.

t Variable, often in considerable amounts

It will be seen from this table that the order of crystallization of the
ferromagnesian silicates is according to a decreasing percentage of sil¬
ica; while for the feldspars and quartz it is according to an increasing
percentage of silica. That is, in the first series the most siliceous min¬
eral crystallizes first, while in the second series the most basic crystal¬
lizes first. In the third part of the table, where the order of crystalli-

632

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

zation is given for all tlie essential minerals, it is seen that the silica
percentage of the minerals falls and rises twice, the last minerals to crys¬
tallize being much more siliceous than the first.

The first essential mineral is iron oxide with no silica, and the last is
silica combined with no other elements.

In the ferromagnesian silicates the ferrous iron decreases in quantity
and the ferric iron increases, while the total amount of irou at first
decreases and then increases. The magnesia decreases a little, and
sometimes increases in biotite. The lime, which belongs to only two of
these minerals, decreases. The alumina increases steadily. The alka¬
lies appear in the last of the series, and only in small amount, except
the potash in the biotite, which is considerable.

In the second series of minerals the variations are more regular. The
alumina aud lime decrease uniformly, and the alkalies increase; soda
appearing before the potash.

It is to be remembered that the crystallization of these minerals in
the diorite is largely synchronous for all of them ; and that they simply
started to crystallize in the order given. The crystallization of those
near together in the series took place at one and the same time; and
only the minerals at the extremes of the series may have formed at dis¬
tinctly different times. The earliest minerals probably ceased to grow
before the orthoclase and quartz commenced to crystallize.

In the case of the diorite at Electric Peak, then, the crystallization of
the magma commenced with the separation of iron oxide alone, followed
by a silicate of ferrous oxide and magnesia, with little or no lime and
alumina. Then followed more complex compounds of iron oxides, mag¬
nesia, lime, alumina and alkalies. The more simple feldspar compounds
began to crystallize early in the series and continued to the end, after
the ferromagnesian molecules had separated from the magma, the
crystallization being closed by silica alone, the least complex compound.

IDDINGS.]

GEOLOGY OF SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

633

SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.

East of Electric Peak, across the deeply cut valley of Reese Creek,
lies Sepulchre Mountain, so called from a mass of breccia ou one of its
high northwest spurs, which resembles a sarcophagus. The mountain
rises to a height of 9, GOO feet, and stands isolated from the surrounding
peaks, from which it is separated by geological faults and also by deep
drainage channels. It is composed of volcanic breccias and massive
lavas that form a body of rock 3,000 feet thick, resting on Cretaceous
and older strata.

The southern and southwestern slopes of the mountain are rounded
from the action of the ice which has passed over the mountain from the
Gallatin range. They are mostly covered with grass and sage brush,
and present comparatively few rock exposures. This is also the char¬
acter of the hills and ridges southwest of the mountain, which lie east
of the fault at the base of Electric Peak, and form part of the geo¬
logical body of Sepulchre Mountain.

The north and east faces of the mountain are precipitous and rocky,
and afford excellent sections of the volcanic mass. The long north¬
western spur is also rugged, and exposes the geological structure of
this part of the mountain. This difference of surface character is
shown by the illustration, PI. lii, from a photograph of the north
and west sides of the mountain.

The breccias exhibit little or no evidence of bedding, and are asso¬
ciated with flows of lava, the whole having a distinctly volcanic char¬
acter. The western portion of the breccia is traversed by numerous
dikes of andesite and dacite, which trend for the most part in a north
and northeast direction from the vicinity of Cache Lake. A few trend
east. The distribution and location of these later intrusions are shown
on the map, PI. liii, in a general way. It is probable that there are
a number of dikes cutting one another in the southwestern portion,
rather than a few broad bodies, as represented on the map ; the data
were not sufficient to locate the different bodies, and the map has been
drawn so as to represent what seems to have been the order and posi¬
tion of the eruptions.

In the northwestern spur of Sepulchre Mountain the dikes are well
marked, and stand out prominently from the surrounding breccia. They
are from 5 to 25 feet wide, and are not perfectly straight, but maintain
a generally uniform direction and can be traced by the eye for some
distance. Long after the eruption of these dike rocks, when the region
had been faulted and erosion had removed a great part of the rocks,
and had cut the valley of Glen Creek, a flow of rhyolite flooded the

634

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

country and filled this valley, covering the south and west base of
Sepulchre Mountain to an altitude of about 8,100 feet. The rhyolite has
been almost entirely removed, but remnants of the sheet are found in
numerous places. This closed the series of volcanic events, as they are
recorded in this vicinity, though in other parts of the region the rhyo¬
lite was followed by eruptions of basalt.

THE VOLCANIC ROCKS AT SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

The volcanic rocks composing Sepulchre Mountain consist of andesitic
breccias and tuffs with lava-flows of the same andesites, besides dikes
of andesite and dacite. By far the greater part of the material is tuff
breccia, which is easily separable into an older and a newer, or a lower
and an upper breccia.

THE LOWER BRECCIA.

The loicer breccia , which is about 500 feet thick, is light colored and
is characterized by phenocrysts of biotite and hornblende. It carries a
great amount of fragments of Areliean schists which are not found in the
overlying dark colored breccias. The lower breccia passes into tuff iu
places, containing fragments of carbonized wood ; and at the extreme end
of the northwest spur it is distinctly bedded with bowlders of foreign
rocks scattered through layers of fine grained material. In places the
upper portion of this bottom breccia is green and partly altered, as
though it had been weathered before the upper breccia was deposited
on it. In the northwestern spur of the mountain the upper breccia is
distinctly seen to rest on an uneven surface of the lighter colored bot¬
tom breccia.

It is probable that the bottom breccia was thrown from some neigh¬
boring Archean area, and is considerably older thau the overlying,
basic breccia. This relation between a bottom breccia of hornblende-
mica-andesite carrying Archean fragments, and overlying, basic brec¬
cias is found to exist in other places in this region.

An examination of the various specimens of this older breccia shows
that it varies in mineral composition as well as in color and microscopi¬
cal habit. It is mostly light colored, gray, white, and red. In places
.it is dark colored. Some varieties carry abundant large phenocrysts,
others contain a multitude of small ones. Though the great bulk of it
is characterized by porphyritical biotite, hornblende and plagioclase,
some portions are poor in biotite, and are hornblende-andesite, while
other parts approach dacite in composition, having biotite and quartz
phenocrysts with those of plagioclase. The groundmass of the differ -
net fragments making up this breccia varies from glassy and microlitic
to microcrystalline.

Associated with the bottom breccia at the northeast base of Sepul¬
chre Mountain is a vesicular basalt with porphyritical augites and
decomposed olivines. It is of small extent, is amygdaloidal, with quartz,
agate, and calcite. Its exact relation to the breccia was not discovered

library

OF" the

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS,

U. R. GEOl OGICAL SURVEY

TWF' FTH ANNUAL RFPORT PL. Lll

ITS NORTHWEST SPUR.

IDDINGS.l

MINERAL VARIATION IN THE BRECCIA.

635

but it appears to be an older basalt, more intimately connected with
the bottom breccia than with the upper breccia. It does not resemble
the younger basalts on the north side of the Yellowstone Eiver opposite
Sepulchre Mountain.

THE UPPER BRECCIA.

The upper breccia , which lies upon the one just described, is dark
colored at its base, where it consists almost wholly of pyroxene-andesite
with little or no hornblende. Many of the fragments are finely vesicu¬
lar and basaltic in appearance, without macroscopic phenocrysts. At
the south base of the mountain this breccia is accompanied by vesicular
flows of pyroxene-andesite, with large porphyritical pyroxenes and feld¬
spars. Intimately connected with this breccia is that of hornblende-
pyroxene-andesite, which forms the uppermost portion of the mountain.
They appear to grade into one another by an increase in the amount of
hornblende. This later breccia is also accompanied by vesicular flows
of the same kind of andesite. It is mostly lighter colored, though some
of it is quite dark, with prominent hornblendes, and has an andesitic
habit and not a basaltic one. There is no evidence of a geological
break between the lower and upper portion of the upper breccia, which
may be considered as a continuous geological body, made up of frag¬
ments and flows of andesite, which have been ejected from a common
source during a prolonged series of eruptions.

The andesitic material composing it varies in mineral composition and
outward appearance between certain limits. This variation will be
described in detail.

Table XII. — Mineral variation in the uppper breccias of Sepulchre Mountain.

Mineral

groups.

Speci¬

men

num¬

ber.

Phenoerysts other than feldspar.

Pyroxene.

Horn¬

blende.

Biotite.

Quartz.

B, .

much

little

much

Bo . . .

much

little

much

some

much

some

much

some

much

some

much

b4 .

much

.some

much

some

much

B/J .

some

much

some

much

little

636

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Thirty-two thin sections have been made from the upper breccia,
which upon investigation resolve themselves into a series of glassy an¬
desites, some of which carry hyperstliene, augite, and plagioclase phe-
nocrysts, and others hyperstliene, augite, hornblende, and plagioclase.
They may be arranged, as in Table XII, according to the relative abund¬
ance of these minerals.

The first two specimens are very basaltic in appearance, with small
plienocrysts. They carry a few decomposed crystals, which were prob¬
ably olivine, but have the microstructure of the associated andesites.

The varieties without hornblende, Bj — that is, the pyroxene-ande¬
sites — have a groundmass of globulitic brown glass filled with microlites
of feldspar, pyroxene, and magnetite grains. The shade of brown
varies from very dark to light, and the size and abundance of the micro¬
lites also varies. The feldspar microlites are plagioclase with rather
low extinction angles.

The pyroxene always includes hypersthene and augite. They have
very much the same general appearance and habit, both occurring in
some instances in large crystals, and in others in small ones. In the
same rock section they differ as to the character of their crystal outline.
Some individuals are bounded by crystal planes, especially in the prism
zone, while others are rounded, particularly at the ends of the crystals.
Some have rough surfaces, with multitudes of irregularly shaped
tongues of glass penetrating the surface of the crystal. This does not
appear to be the result of a corrosion of the crystal, but of a rapid crys¬
tallization of the mineral at the end of its growth, when the surround¬
ing glassy magma was becoming filled with microlites, and was crys¬
tallizing from more numerous centers, for there are instances where
larger depressions in the surface of the pyroxene crystals can be seen
to have been occasioned by the presence of small crystals of feldspar,
which must have hindered the growth of the pyroxene. They have
numerous inclusions of glass, with gas bubbles, which are irregularly
scattered through the minerals in most cases, but are occasionally ar¬
ranged zonally ; besides which are grains of magnetite and a few small
crystals of apatite.

The hypersthene is pleocliroic, and is green parallel to c, yellow par¬
allel to a, and light red parallel to b. In most of the thin sections it is light
colored, but in one instance there is a large individual with very strong
colors and pleochroism, which carries brown inclusions in the shape of
thin plates arranged in lines at right angles to the vertical axis of the
crystal. These inclusions resemble those characteristic of many hyper-
sthenes in coarse grained rocks. In this instance the hypersthene
crystal occurs in a glassy, vesicular rock, and the inclusions do not ap¬
pear to have resulted from an alteration of the mineral subsequent to
the solidification of the rock, but to have been primary inclusions of
some foreign substance. The lighter colored hypersthenes do not carry
such inclusions. The color frequently varies in concentric zoues, the
center being light in some cases and dark in others.

IDDINGS.7

PYROXENE-ANDESITE.

637

In some forms of tlie rock the hypersthene and augite have narrow
reddish brown borders which are in part opaque. This border, though
not so strongly marked as the black margin to many hornblendes, ap¬
pears to be of similar origin and to be due to an action of the magma
on the crystals before the final consolidation of the rock. It affects the
pyroxene microlites in the gronndmass as well as the plienocrysts.

The color of the augite is light green without pleocliroism in thin
sections; and is easily confounded with the sections of hypersthene
which exhibit little pleocliroism. Its optical characteristics are the
same as those of the augite in the diorites already described ; in fact,
the pyroxenes of both rocks are alike optically, and have the same dis¬
tinctions with respect to cleavage, which is more perfect in the augites
than in the hypersthenes.

Instances of the comqdete inclosure of one of the pyroxenes by the
other, or of their intergrowth, are rare. In the few cases observed small
hypersthenes are surrounded by augite, indicating the earlier crystalli¬
zation of the hypersthene. But the occasional intergrowths of the two,
and the partial inclosures of adjacent individuals in groups, proves that
the crystallization of most of the hypersthene and augite plienocrysts
was contemporaneous. When decomposition has attacked the rock
hypersthene yields before the augite, and is converted into a green
fibrous mineral, probably bastite.

The feldspar phenocrysts are all plagioclase, which from their optical
characters appear to be labradorite. They are small in most forms of
the rock, but larger and more abundant in others. They are rectangu¬
lar in long and short sections, a few are broad and polygonally outlined.
The sections are mostly straight edged, some are rounded at the cor¬
ners, and others are rough like the pyroxene crystals. The rough pro¬
jections of the feldspars have crystal faces and appear to be due to an
irregular checking of their crystallization. They exhibit the charac¬
teristic polysynthetic twinning of labradorite and are beautifully zonal.
But the zones do not differ much in optical orientation, the extinction
being quite uniform throughout each individual.

Glass inclusions are frequent in the feldspars ; in some of the larger
crystals the central portion is crowded with inclusions of the brown
glass containing the same microlites as the surrounding groundmass.
These inclusions are usually in rectangular negative crystal cavities.
Many of the smaller feldspars are almost free from them. There are
occasionally grains of magnetite and pyroxene.

In most cases the feldspar and pyroxene phenocrysts are separated
by the groundmass of the rock. But when they occur in juxtaposition
it is evident that the feldspar is a younger crystallization which started
after the pyroxene had commenced to crystallize, but before it had
finished, for the feldspar interferes with the perfect development of the
pyroxene.

638

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Magnetite occurs in phenoerysts associated with the pyroxene and
also isolated in the groundmass. It is in definite crystals and in irregu¬
lar grains.

There are five representatives of the pyroxene-andesites which carry
a few crystals of hornblende, B2, and constitute transitional varieties
between these rocks and the hornblende-pyroxene-andesites. They ex¬
hibit the same characters as the andesites just described.

The hornblende is in small irregular crystals, some being rounded and
others in angular shapes. It is reddish brown and brownish green,
with strong pleochroism. Many of the individuals, especially the
rounded ones, have a narrow border of magnetite or one of small crys¬
tals of pyroxene, feldspar, and magnetite. There are all gradations,
from rounded hornblendes with opaque borders to small angular pieces
of hornblende surrounded by comparatively large crystals of pyroxene,
feldspar, and some magnetite, which form a group of interlocked crystals
in the glassy groundmass. The angular outline of the hornblende and
its penetration between the crystals of feldspar and pyroxene would
militate against the supposition that the hornblende is a remnant of a
previous crystal that had been partially resorbed in the groundmass,
were it not for the occurrence in one thin section of a group of different
crystals with a hexagonal outline, corresponding to the cross section
of the hornblende remnants contained in it which are properly oriented
for such a section. The greater part of the group consists of feld¬
spar and pyroxene with some magnetite. It is not to be supposed that
these minerals crystallized out of the melted hornblende substance
without interchange of material from the surrounding magma. The
larger groups in the same rock section exhibit no definite outward form,
but are bounded by the outlines of the outer crystals, so that we may
conclude that the process of resorption of the hornblende phenoerysts
was in some cases accompanied by the immediate formation of grains
of magnetite and the absorption of the other chemical constituents by
the magma; while in other cases the melted hornblende recrystallized
in situ as pyroxene and magnetite. But in the instances just men¬
tioned the partial resorption of the hornblende was followed by a
greater tendency toward crystallization in the magma immediately sur.
rounding the melted hornblende, which led to the development of a
group of all the minerals then capable of forming. These minerals are
the same in size and character as the small crystals scattered through
the glassy groundmass.

In rock section No. 12 several small individuals of biotite occur with
the same kinds of borders as those surrounding the hornblende. This
thin section and one other, No. 32, are the only ones carrying biotite.
It is in very small amounts in each case.

The remaining thin sections may be classed as liornblende-pyroxene-
audesites, in which the proportions of hornblende and pyroxene vary.
In the first four, B3, the pyroxene is in excess of the hornblende. In

IDDINGS.]

HORN13LENDE-PYEOXENE-ANDESITE.

639

the following ten, B4, they are about equal and in the last five, B5, the
hornblende is in excess. The varieties thus form a series from those
without hornblende to others with much hornblende and very little
pyroxene.

In these andesites the microscopical character of the pyroxenes is the
same as in those first described, except that they are in better shaped
crystals, seldom rounded or with dark borders. The hypersthene is
mostly light colored in thin section, but in several rock sections some
of the individuals are strongly colored at the center, while others are
more strongly colored at the margin.

The hornblende differs throughout these sections in color and in the
extent to which it has been resorbed. In some cases it shows no sign
of resorption. The form of the crystals when perfect is derived from
the unit prism and clinopinacoid and the usual terminations. In many
instances the crystal faces are poorly preserved and only the general
characteristic form remains, especially in cross sections.

The color is intensely red in some varieties of the rock, in others it
is reddish brown, chestnut brown, greenish brown, and also brownish
green, with the corresponding pleochroism. This difference of color
bears no relation to the presence or absence of opaque border nor to
the amount of resorption exhibited by the hornblende. It does not ap¬
pear to be due to secondary alteration of the hornblendes, since they
all occur in perfectly fresh glassy rocks, and the color is generally uni¬
form for all the hornblende in one rock section, when the rock is not a
tuff.

The character of the border when present varies for different indi¬
viduals of hornblende in one rock section. Around some it is a narrow
margin of magnetic grains, while in a few instances it is a heavy opaque
border. Other hornblendes in the same section are surrounded by crys¬
tals of pyroxene, plagioclase, and magnetite. In many sections, how¬
ever, all the hornblendes have been affected to the same extent and
have a narrow opaque border, while in others there are no borders at all.

It does not seem possible to connect the character or degree of the
resorption with any definite degree of crystallization of the groundmass
of the rocks. And, as just stated, different phases of resorption and
of borders occur in one and the same rock section. It is often noticed
that the center as well as the margin of the hornblende crystal has
become an aggregate of pyroxenes and feldspars, and that very little
of the hornblende substance remains. But it is also observed that
many of the hornblendes which show no evidence of resorption have
large and irregularly shaped inclusions and “bays” of the groundmass
in them. So that it is probable that many of the cases of apparent
extensive resorption or corrosion may be crystals which originally con¬
tained large bays of groundmass. Inclusions of glass are not very
abundant, except in certain individuals.

640

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

There are numerous instances in which the hornblende incloses small
pyroxenes and plagioclases, as well as magnetites, and others in which
hornblendes and plagioclases have crystallized beside each other and
have mutually interfered, proving that their growth was contempo¬
raneous in part. As there are two or more generations of plagioclase
and pyroxene, it is natural that the hornblende appears to be contempo¬
raneous with the earlier feldspars and pyroxenes, and older than the
later generations.

The feldspars are all plagioclase, but appear to belong to different
species. They are in rather small crystals in most of the rock sections.
The larger ones are generally labradorite, and many of the small ones
are the same, but in a number of the sections the extinction angles in¬
dicate andesine or oligoclase. They are mostly rectangular with perfect
crystallographic outline, some are tabular and polygonal, and in this
position they exhibit the most striking zonal structure, which is almost
universally present. The twinning is that characteristic of andesitic
plagioclases. Glass inclusions are of frequent occurrence. In some
cases the feldspar contains a great amount of glass which almost equals
the bulk of the feldspar substance. Occasionally the feldspar has an
irregular form and an indented outline, made by the projection of crys¬
tal points, the margin of the individual having a different optical orien¬
tation from the central portion, and appearing to be formed of more
alkaline plagioclase. These are not very common.

The groundmass of these andesites is the same as that of the pyrox¬
ene andesites in some cases, and is composed of globulitic brown glass
with microlites of pyroxene, feldspar and magnetite. But in most of
the sections it consists of colorless glass crowded with small microlites
of the same minerals. It carries microscopic crystals of these minerals
which are porphyritical with respect to the groundmass when seen
with a microscope, but which in turn form part of the groundmass which
carries the macroscopic phenocrysts.

THE DIKE KOCKS.

The dike rocks of Sepulchre Mountain, as already mentioned, con¬
sist of a series of andesites and dacites, the earliest of which resemble
the pyroxene-andesites and hornblende-andesites of the breccias. They
vary in mineral composition as indicated by the porphyritical crystals
of all sizes that are scattered through the groundmass, and range from
rocks with phenocrysts of liypersthene, augite and plagioclase, to those
with phenocrysts of quartz, biotite, hornblende aud plagioclase. This
variation is shown in the accompanying table (Table XIII), in which the
103 thin sections of these dike rocks are arranged according to the por¬
phyritical minerals contained in them.

While the greater number of pyroxene-andesites and hornblende-
pyroxene-andesites carry no biotite, there is a small amount of it in some
of the latter varieties. In one instance biotite, hcrnblende, and pyroxene
occur together in considerable amounts.

IDDING8.]

COMPOSITION OF DIKE ROCKS

641

Table XIII. — Mineralogical variations in the dike rocks of Sepulchre Mountain.

Mineral

group.

Specimen

number.

Plienocrysts other than feldspar.

Mineral

group.

Specimen

number.

Plienocrysts other then feldspar.

Pyrox¬

ene.

Horn¬

blende.

Biotite.

Quartz.

Pyrox¬

ene.

Horn¬

blende.

Biotite.

Quartz.

much

D. ...

- 35

it. J

(?)

/■

much

little

D2 - - j

little

much

little

much

little

much

some

much

l >8 ■ -

47'

much

trace

100

much

little

101

some

much

little

102

(?)

much

some

much

little

103

(?)

much

some

much

little

104

little

much

L>9 . }

105

little

(

108

little

much

114

little

much

115

little

106

little

107

little

Hu, .

109

n. . .

little

110

little

(?)

111

trace

112

trace

113

little

116

little

117

trace

118

little

119

121

199.

1 23

On .

126

127

120

much

124

much

I>.

125

128

129

much

130

131

little

much

132

little

D„

133

little

134

little

much

n6..|

135

little

much

little

There is a number of hornblende-andesites with neither pyroxene nor
biotite, and others with a small amount of both. In most of the horn¬
blende-mica- andesites there are no porphyritical pyroxenes; they occur
in a few varieties only and in small amounts, and are equally rare in
the dacites.

The greatest amount of porphyritical quartz is generally accompanied
by considerable biotite and less hornblende.

Plagioclase feldspars are preseut in all the varieties of these rocks,
but vary in composition from labradorite in the basic andesites to
oligoclaseor andesine in the dacites.

As to the microscopical characters of the essential minerals it may
be said that they are like those already described for the essential
minerals in the andesites which form the breccias.

12 GrEOL - 11

642

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

The pyroxenes are the same, and consist of hypersthene and augite
in all cases where they are fresh. In many instances a part of the
pyroxene is entirely altered and part is fresh, and is augite, the hyper¬
sthene having been completely decomposed. They have the same color
and pleocliroism and crystal form as those in the andesites just de¬
scribed, and need no further comment.

The hornblende in some of the pyroxene-andesites is represented
simply by paramorphs, which consist of grains of magnetite and pyr¬
oxene with the outward form of hornblende crystals; in others it is in
small individuals, with a broad or narrow black border, occasionally
with no border. In the hornblende-pyroxene-andesites the hornblende
has a black border in some instances, but in the majority of cases it is
entirely free from any border; the same is true of it in the hornblende-
andesites. In the more acid andesites and dacites the hornblende ex¬
hibits no signs of black border.

In many instances where the crystal form is well developed both the
ortliopinacoid and clinopinacoid is present besides the unit prism faces,
which is characteristic of the hornblende in the diorites of Electric Peak.

The color of the hornblende varies somewhat from brown and green¬
ish brown to brownish green and green, with the usual pleocliroism.
It is brown and greenish brown in most of the pyroxene- and hornblende-
andesites, but is very generally green and brownish green in the liorn-
blende-mica-andesites and dacites. Its color is like that of the horn¬
blendes in the porphyrites and diorites of Electric Peak.

Many of the hornblendes carry glass inclusions, and some have large
bays and irregularly shaped inclusions of groundmass. They also
inclose grains of magnetite and apatite, and occasionally are inter-
grown with pyroxene in such a manner that the two appear to have
crystallized at the same time.

In some of the dacites the hornblende is entirely decomposed, while
the biotite is still intact.

The biotite is chestnut brown, in thin section, with the ordinary ab¬
sorption. The optic angle is very small and the mineral behaves like a
uniaxial one. Its crystal form is simple and the individuals are gener¬
ally quite thick. It is unaltered in almost all the rock sections, and
carries a variable amount of inclusions of magnetite and apatite, with
occasional zircon. In one instance it completely incloses a small crys¬
tal of plagioclase.

The feldspars are all plagioclase, and exhibit the characteristic po¬
lysynthetic twinning. In the more basic andesites they are mostly very
small individuals, with rectangular sections and high extinction angles,
indicating labradorite. They are usually very abundant. In some
instances they are fewer in number, and do not exhibit high extinction
angles or high double refraction, and appear to be oligoclase.

In the more acid andesites and dacites the plagioclases are larger
and have more crystal faces, the sections being more polygonal and
broader. The extinction angles are lower, and there seems to be sev-

IDDINGS.]

FELDSPAR AND QUARTZ.

(143

eral kinds of plagioclases among tlie phenocrysts; some are sharply
rectangular with numerous twin lamella}, and extinction angles indi¬
cating labradorite, while the majority of the individuals are not rec¬
tangular, have fewer lamellae and lower extinction angles, and exhibit
very marked zonal structure. They appear to be oligoclase; they all
carry more or less glass inclusions, which are very abundant in some
individuals and in some rock sections, and are quite scarce in others.
The different specimens of the rocks vary greatly in the amount of
inclusions in the phenocrysts. In one of the hornblende-andesites
which has a brown, globulitic, glassy groundmass, many of the feld¬
spars inclose patches and small bits of the brown glass, but one of the
larger plagioclases also carries a great number of opaque needles and
grains, arranged in several systems of parallel lines, which are iden¬
tical with the inclusions in many of the labradorites in the diorites of
Electric Peak. Besides this individual of feldspar there are several
others which exhibit the same thing to a slight degree. There is an¬
other tine example of it in a glassy hornblende-andesite; the feldspar
in this case carries abundant inclusions of glass as well as the clouds
of microscopic needles. This is important, as it proves the primary
nature of these particular inclusions, and indicates that the phenocrysts
containing them crystallized under conditions similar to those attend¬
ing the crystallization of the labradorites in the diorites of Electric
Peak.

The quartz phenocrysts occur in the biotite-horublende rocks, and vary
in amount from a few microscopic individuals to very abundant macro¬
scopic ones. Their crystal form is well marked in many cases and cor¬
responds to the double pyramid, but other individuals in the same rock
section are rounded, and some have quite an irregular outline. It sel¬
dom, if ever, happens that all the individuals of quartz in one rock sec¬
tion exhibit the same degree of perfection of crystal form; rounded grains
and idiomorphic crystals are scattered indiscriminately through the
rock. The same is true in many instances of the hornblende individ¬
uals, as already described.

The quartzes occur singly in isolated crystals, and also in groups of
two or more individuals with different orientations, grown together in
the same manner as those of feldspar or of the ferromagnesian silicates.
Glass inclusions are found in nearly all the quartzes, but in very differ¬
ent amounts, some being crowded with them, while others are almost
free from them. They are usually in negative crystal cavities, occa¬
sionally in rounded ones. In some cases they are accompanied by the
six-rayed cracks so common in the quartzes of rhyolites. The quartzes
often inclose bays of groundmass, and occasionally small crystals of
hornblende, biotite, and plagioclase. These latter inclosures show that
the quartzes crystallized after part, at least, of the hornblende, biotite, and
plagioclase had crystallized. The inclosing quartzes are rounded at the
corners. In one instance a quartz contains small fluid inclusions besides
those of glass.

644

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Magnetite , which is very abundant in the more basic rocks, and is in
much smaller amounts in the dacites, needs no special description.

The apatite occurs in short, stout, hexagonal prisms; it is colorless,
and is rare in the basic andesites, and more abundant in the more acid
andesites and dacites. The same is true of the zircon , which is seldom
observed in the basic andesites.

Small individuals of allanite are found in three of thedacite sections.

It is dark brown, with strong absorption.

The groundmasses of these rocks, which result from the processes of
final solidification of the various magmas, differ in degree of crystalli¬
zation, in mineral composition, and in structure.

In the pyroxene- and hornblende-pyroxene-andesites the gronndmass
in many eases is glassy, with multitudes of microlites of pyroxene and
plagioclase and grains of magnetite. In many others it is completely
crystallized and the outline of the microlites is no longer sharply defined.
In one glassy liornblende-pyroxene-andesite there is a segregation of
minerals, which is interesting from the fact that the mass is not liolo-
crystalline, but contains in the interstices between the large crystals
vesicular glass with skeleton feldspars, and much fewer microlites than
the glassy gronndmass contains. The segregation, at first glance, re¬
sembles those holocrystalline groups of hornblende and plagioclase so
common in the andesites and porphyries. It consists of large horn¬
blende crystals, with a few small biotites and pyroxenes inclosed in
them, besides some plagioclase. But the feldspars carry many fine glass
inclusions, which are also found in the hornblendes. The interstitial
glass is partly colorless, partly globulitic, carrying long, slender skeleton
plagioclases, with square cross sections, and a few needles of pyroxene
with grains of magnetite attached. This glass is quite vesicular, while
the gronndmass of the rock presents a wholly different appearance.
The latter is compact, and crowded with small microlites of feldspar
and pyroxene and magnetite, having a typical felt-like structure. The
hornblende and plagioclase of the segregation have the same charac¬
ters as those of the same minerals in the surrounding rock, but they
carry more glass inclusions. The crystal form of the minerals on the
outside of the segregation is perfect, and the large crystals project into
the surrounding gronndmass of the rock. The segregation can not be
t he broken fragment of some foreign rock mass, but must be a local
crystallization which advanced more rapidly than that of the surround¬
ing portion of the rock, but did not result in complete crystallization.
Within the interstitial glassy portion are numerous hollow cavities.

In the holocrystalline varieties of these rocks the gronndmass lias
attained different degrees of crystallization, which may be compared
with those exhibited by the intrusive rocks at Electric Peak. Separat¬
ing the rocks into five groups to correspond to the preponderance of
pyroxene with little hornblende; of pyroxene and hornblende; of horn¬
blende alone, or with little pyroxene; of hornblende and mica, and of

HIDINGS 1

GRADES OF CRYSTALLIZATION.

645

mica, born blende, and quartz (See Tables XII and XIII), and arrang¬
ing them according to the size of grain of the groundmass, they fall into
the order given in Table XIV. In this table the grades of crystalliza¬
tion correspond to those established for the intrusive rocks of Electric
Peak, which are expressed in Table VI I T, with the addition of five more
divisions which embrace two finer grained degrees of liolocrystalline
structures and three degrees of glassiness.

Table XIV. — Grades of crystallization of the eruptive rocks of Sepulchre Mountain.

Bj, B2, D„ Dj.

n3, b4, b5, d3. n4, d5, nc.

D7, 7)n, 1)9.

Biot Du, Djj.

1 .

9, 10

1,2, 3, 4, 11, 12,
33, 34, 35, 39,
40

5, 6, 7, 8, 13, 41

14, 18, 29

15,16,19, 20, 21,
22, 23, 24, 25,
30, 43, 44, 45,
46

17, 26, 27, 31, 32

2 .

3 .

4 .

53, 69, 70, 83
54, 71, 72
55, 73, 74
75, 76, 77, 84

56, 57, 58, 59, 79.
80, 81, 78

60, 61, 62, 63. 64

90, 91,104
86, 92, 93
94, 95

87, 96, 97, 98

99, 100, 105

5 .

6 .

47,48, 49

106, 116, 117

107, 118, 119,
120, 131

108, 109, 110,
111,121,122,
123,124,125,

132, 133
112,126,127

7 .

8 .

9 .

10 .

11 .

65, 66, 82

134

12 .

88, 89

13 . .

113, 135

14 .

101

16 .

102

18 .

128

114, 115, 129,
130

103

20 .

21. .

22 .

23.

24 .

The inierostructure of the acidic varieties is not the same as that of
the basic, so that it is difficult to compare the grain of one directly with
that of the other; but since the intermediate rocks possess microstruc-
tures intermediate between these extremes, it is possible to establish a
kind of relationship between them, and it is admissible to place them
in the same line across the table, it being understood that the corre¬
spondence is an approximation.

A glance at Table XIV shows that a great majority of the varieties
are very fine grained forms that have only reached the crystallization
of the few smallest grained forms of the Electric Peak rocks. A small
number of them are more coarsely microcrystalline and correspond to
the grain of the dike rocks at Electric Peak. A large number are
finer grained than any of these rocks, or are glassy. The coarsest
grained forms have been attained by the most basic varieties, but they
do not represent bodies of any considerable extent. Specimen Xo. 42,

646

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

grade 25, comes from a small exposure with no definite limits, sur¬
rounded by much finer grained rocks. It is properly a diorite-porpliyrite,
and carries much biotite of final consolidation, which has not been reck¬
oned with the plienocrysts.

The coarsest grained forms of the acid varieties, however, represent
larger bodies and are more abundant in the field.

In explanation of the degrees of crystallization indicated in the
table, it may be said that the first three are glassy groundmasses, the
first one having fewer microlites than the second. In the third the
microlites are closely crowded together. The next two represent micro-
litic structures in which no glass can be detected; they appear to be
liolocrystalline. In the sixth grade the form of the microlites is more
indistinct, but the general structure is the same as before. Beyond
this the different degrees indicate increasing grades of a structure
which may be described in general as follows : Commencing with the
lowest order, the groundmass is composed of a multitude of indistinct
microlites of lath-shaped feldspars; between crossed nicols this aggre¬
gation extinguishes light in small patches, which bear no fixed relation
to the position of the microlites within them. As the dimensions of
the lath-shaped feldspars become larger it is observed that the patches
of light and darkness arise from the cementing material between these
feldspars. This cement possesses the same optical orientation for
small spaces which in cross section produce the patches just alluded
to. In still coarser grained forms it becomes apparent that the cement¬
ing material is quartz which has crystallized in irregularly shaped
patches inclosing many smaller feldspars. The size of these feldspars
and of the interstices between them is taken as the grain of the rock,
and not the size of the patches of quartz. For it is observed that as
the rocks become more coarsely crystalline the feldspars, which are
plagioclase, increase steadily in size and each quartz patch cements
fewer of them, until in still coarser grades the quartz forms allotrio-
morphic individuals between the plagioclases and does not surround
any, so that in these varieties of rock the size of grain is judged by
the dimensions of the plagioclases and the interstices of quartz. The
patchy structure just described is that already mentioned on page 589
and called mieropoicilitic.

In the most siliceous varieties of the rocks the microstructure is
different. The smallest grained forms appear to approach a granular
structure, in which, however, the feldspars exhibit a more or less rec¬
tangular shape and the quartz shows a tendency to appear in minute,
poorly defined dihexahedrons. As the grain becomes larger the form
of the quartz grains becomes more pronounced. They are rudely idio-
morphic, with sections that are in many cases equilateral rhombs,
extinguishing the light parallel to their diagonals. In the coarsest
grained forms of the dacites these imperfectly idiomorphic quartzes are
characteristic of the groundmass and reach a diameter of from 0-08nnn to
O-IO""". Their surface is indented with the ends and corners of small

1DDINGS.]

M IN ERAL COMPOSITION.

G47

plagioelases, the structure of the groundmass being hypidiomorphic.
These quartzes often contain minute colorless inclusions in negative
crystal cavities which have every appearance of being glass and cor¬
respond to the glass inclusions in the quartz phenocrysts of the same
rocks. The partially idiomorphic quartzes in the groundmass are to a
slight degree porphyritical with respect to the other constituents, but
belong to the final consolidation of the magma.

GENERAL CONSIDERATION OF THE MINERAL AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF THE
ERUPTIVE ROCKS OF SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Mineral composition. — The mineral variations in the group of rocks
forming Sepulchre Mountain are much simpler and require much less
discussion than those of the intrusive rocks of Electric Peak. They
have already been expressed in the Tables XIII and XIY. From these
tables it is evident that the so-called transitional forms of the rocks are
as numerous and as important as those forms which would be con¬
sidered type rocks. It is possible to describe those varieties of andesite
with augite and hypersthene and no hornblende as typical pyroxene-
andesite, those varieties with nearly equal amounts of pyroxene and
hornblende as typical hornblende-pyroxene-andesites, those varieties
with hornblende alone as typical hornblende-andesites, and so on for
typical hornblende-mica-andesites and typical dacites. And for con¬
venience of description this may be admissible. But in the occurrence
at Sepulchre Mountain such a method of description would create a
false impression and would lead one to expect definite bodies of such
type rocks with facies which should present the transitional variations;
whereas, there are definite bodies of the so-called type rocks and
equally definite bodies of the intermediate varieties which are quite as
numerous. There is no particular mineralogical modification of the
rocks at this place, which from its greater abundance or its special
mode of occurrence renders it a type rock. On the contrary, the whole
accumulation of eruptive rocks which are subsequent to the bottom
breccia, with its admixture of Archean fragments, must be considered
as a series of volcanic rocks that vary in mineral composition, through
gradual changes from pyroxene-andesite to dacite.

Starting with those rocks which carry phenocrysts of pyroxene and
plagioclase, it is observed that as the hornblende makes its appearance
and increases in amount the pyroxene decreases. Biotite accompanies
the hornblende in the more acidic varieties and increases in amount with
the acidity of the rock. Quartz first appears in small quantities and
increases with the acidity of the rock, the hornblende decreasing at
the same time. To this rule there are exceptions which are indicated
in the table; biotite is found to a slight extent in some of the liorn-
blende-pyroxene-andesites and pyroxene occurs in small amounts in
some of the hornblende-mica-andesites. It is, of course, understood that
this relation between the essential minerals may be different for groups
of andesites in other regions.

648

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Chemical composition. — The chemical composition of the eruptive
rocks of Sepulchre Mountain is shown in the accompanying table of
chemical analyses:

Table XV. — Chemical analyses of rocks from Sepulchre Mountain.

Specimen number.! 33

102

129

131

SiO, .

55. 83

55. 92

56. 61

57. 1 7

60. 30

04. 27

65. 50

05. 06

67. 49

Tio", .

1.05

.94

.79

1.03

.76

.32

.45

1.37

. 13

A l.O, .

17. 11

17. 70

13.62

17.25

16. 31

17. 84

14. 94

15. 61

16. 18

Fe,0, .

4. 07

3. 16

5.89

2.48

4. 35

3. 36

1.72

2.10

1.30

FcO .

3.75

4.48

2. 60

4. 31

1.41

1.29

2. 27

2. 07

1 22

MnO .

none

t race

.35

none

. 13

none

.20

none

.08

CaO .

7.40

5. 90

6.61

5. 62

3. 42

2. 33

3. 64

2.08

BaO

. 14

.15

. 13

MgO .

5. 05

4. 34

5. 48

4. 83

2. 39

2.00

2. 97

2.46

1.34

Sr() .

t race

trace t

Li,<> .

. 09

trace

.03

.36

Xa‘n .

2. 94

4.08

3. 13

3.44

3.99

3.84

5. 40

3.65

4. 37

KsO .

1.71

2.28

2.71

2. 03

2. 36

2. 48

2.70

2. 03

2. 40

IV >5 .

.21

. 18

.06

. 05

.20

.16

.09

trace

.13

so, .

trace

. 10

trace

.00

. 13

< '1

none

trace

. 12

CO.

HO .

1.28

1.42

2.27

1.20

2.50

1.32

1.37

1.07

2.69

100. 40

100. 45

100. 26

100. 40

100.57

100. 33

100. 25

100. 27

100. 01

.03

■'

100. 24

Nos. 33, 80, 2, 95, and 129 were analyzed by Mr. J. E. Whitfield, Nos.
20, 21, and 102 were analyzed by Dr. T. M. Chatard, and No. 131 was
analyzed by Mr. L. G. Eakins.

The first, No. 33, and fourth, No. 2, are analyses of pyroxene- andesites
which carry no hornblende; the first is a dike near the summit of the
mountain, the other is from a surface flow at its southwest base. Nos.
20 and 21 are of hornblende-pyroxene-andesites, occurring as breccia
in the upper part of the mountain. No. 80 is of hornblende- andesite,
which is an intruded body in the small hill northeast of Cache Lake at
the head of iteese Creek. No. 95 is a hornblende-mica-andesite from
the same locality, also an intrusive rock. No. 102 is the same kind of
andesite from an intrusive mass at the north base of Sepulchre Mountain,
and Nos. 129 and 131 are dacites from the ridge south of Cache Lake.

The range of variation in the percentage of silica is about the same
as that of the rocks at Electric Peak. The character of the variations
of the other oxides in these rocks is shown by the accompanying dia¬
gram, which represents the variations in the molecular proportions of
the essential oxides and has been plotted in the manner already de¬
scribed on page 028.

A glance at this diagram shows that it has the same form as that of
the group of analyses of the rocks from Electric Peak. The variations
in tlie oxides other than silica are quite irregular for a gradual change
in the silica. The alumina varies rapidly in places and retains a high
position in the diagram. The alkalies gradually increase with the silica,
the soda molecules being twice as numerous as those of potash and
their variations being alike with one exception. Magnesia varies most
widely and in striking contrast to the alumina; in each instance they

IDDINGS.]

MOLECULAR VARIATION

(349

vary in opposite directions. The lime is nearly as irregular as the
magnesia, both decreasing rapidly from the less siliceous to the more
siliceous end of the series. The two oxides of iron are strikingly recip¬
rocal in their variations, the significance of which has been pointed out
in dismissing the diagram for Electric Peak. In the group of analyses
from Sepulchre Mountain the oxidation of the iron bears a noticeable re¬
lation to the presence of hornblende, biotite, and magnetite in the rocks.

From a study of these analyses it is evident that the chemical varia¬
tions in this group of rocks are the same in character and extent as
those in the intrusive rocks of Electric Peak. Moreover, it appears
that the variations between similar varieties of andesite — such as those
between different pyroxene-andesites — are as great as and in some cases

greater than the variations between varieties of andesites which are
distinguished mineralogically from one another. Thus Nos. 33 and 2
are pyroxene-andesites without hornblende, Nos. 20 and 21 are horn¬
blende-pyroxene-andesites, while No. <30 is a hornblende-andesite. It is
not possible to point to any chemical character of these rocks which is
distinctive of this mineral variation, with the exception of the oxida¬
tion of the iron, which, though slight, is an important one; for it un¬
doubtedly relates to forces which did not alter the fundamental relation
between the bases in the magma, but simply modified it by changing
the oxidation of one of them. The last four analyses are of liornblende-
mica-andesites and dacites. The chemical variations between them are
as pronounced as those between the more basic members of the series,
without there being the corresponding differences between the kinds of
ferromagnesian silicates, so far as it can be detected microscopically.

650

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

They all carry hornblende and biotite and no pyroxene, the relative
proportions of these minerals varying-. The character and amount of
the feldspars differ in these rocks, and so do the abundance and mode
of occurrence of the quartz. In Nos. 129 and 131 quartz appears as
phenocrysts ; in the other rock it is confined to the groundmass.

COMPARISON OF THE ROCKS FROM THE TWO LOCALITIES.

Having described the geological structure of Electric Peak and of
Sepulchre Mountain and the occurrence and character of the igneous
rocks in each locality, it remains to point out the relationship of the
two groups of rocks to each other, and the petrological deductions
which may be drawn from their investigation.

To arrive at the relationship of the volcanic rocks of Sepulchre Moun¬
tain to the intrusive rocks of Electric Peak it is necessary to observe,
in review of the facts already presented, that the latter cut through
Cretaceous shales and sandstones and have imparted sufficient heat to
them to metamorphose them for a great distance, indicating the passage
of large quantities of molten magma through the fissures; while the
lavas of Sepulchre Mountain rest on Cretaceous strata and also carry
large blocks of black shale inclosed within them. They plainly show
by their crushed and dragged portions that a profound fault has sepa¬
rated the block of Sepulchre Mountain from that of Electric Peak,
dropping the former down considerably more than 4,000 feet. Conse¬
quently the volcanic rocks of Sepulchre Mountain once occupied a
higher elevation than the present summit of Electric Peak and its
bodies of intrusive rock.

In Electric Peak there is a system of fissures that radiates outward
toward the south and southwest, as shown by the dikes of porphyrite.
At the west base of Sepulchre Mountain there is a system of dikes and
intruded bodies that radiates outward toward the north and northeast.
These fissures antedate the great faulting just mentioned and represent
the east and west halves of a system of fissures trending from north
and south around to northeast and southwest which crossed one another
at the point where the broadest body of intruded rock is now found.
The axis of this system appears to have been inclined toward the east,
that is, to have dipped toward the west, and was cut across by the
great fault which dropped Sepulchre Mountain.

The igneous rocks that broke through the strata of Electric Peak
consist of a series of porpliyrites, occurring in sheets between the strata,
and another series of diorites and porpliyrites that were erupted through
the vertical fissures just alluded to. The central fissure or fissures
became the conduit through which the molten magmas followed one
another at successive intervals of time. In the outlying narrow fissures
the magmas solidified as dikes of porphyrite, while within the heated
conduit they consolidated into coarse grained diorites of various kinds.
The magmas of this series of eruptions became more and more siliceous.
Their succession is indicated in the accompanying table.

iddings.] the SUCCESSION OF ERUPTIONS. 651

Table XVI. — Order of eruption of the rocks at Electric Peak and Sepulchre Mountain.

Succession of eruptions at Electric Peak.

Succession of eruptions at Sepulchre
Mountain.

A. Intrusion of sheets of porphyrite from
the southwest.

A. Extravasation of andesitic breccia from
some Archean area.

15. Intrusion of dike- and stock-rocks in
the following order :

15. Eruption of andesitic breccias and dikes
in the following order :

Pyroxene-porphyrites, grading into py¬
roxene- and hornblende-diorites with
biotite of final crystallization.

with dikes of pyroxene- and liorn-
blende-porphyrites, grading into

Pyroxene-andesites, breccia, and flows

pyroxene- hornblende -andesites, breccia,
and flows, with dikes of similar an¬
desites, grading into

passing into

hornblende-biotite-diorites with biotite
of early crystallization.

with dikes of hornblende-biotite-por-
phyrites ;

hornblende-biotite-andesites in dikes,
grading into

quartz-biotite-diorite-porphyrite with
some hornblende,

dacites with phenocrysts of quartz,
biotite, and some hornblende.

with dikes of quartz-biotite-porphy
rite.

Tlie igneous rocks that formed the breccias and lava flows of Sepul¬
chre Mountain with their dikes and larger intruded bodies constitute a
series of andesites, basalts and dacites, which reach a degree of crystal¬
lization that places part of them among the porphyrites. They com¬
menced with an andesitic breccia that is filled with Archean fragments,
which must have been thrown from some neighboring center of eruption
located in an Archean area. Such a center exists a few miles to the
north. This was followed by a series of magmas that were at first
somewhat basic and became more and more siliceous. The series is
represented in the right hand column of Table XYI. From this it is
seen that the succession of eruption in each locality was the same, after
the first period, A, in which the magmas evidently came from different
sources. Each series of the second period began with basic magmas
and ended with acidic ones. Their division in the table into four groups
is not intended to convey the idea that they belong to four distinct
periods of eruption. The whole series in each case is more correctly a
single, irregularly interrupted succession of outbursts of magma that
gradually changed its composition and character. Upon comparing the
rocks which have resulted from the corresponding phases of these series
of eruptions, the similarity of the porphyritic forms is immediately rec¬
ognized. The nature and distribution of the phenocrysts in the different
varieties of andesite and dacite, which determine their macroscopical
habit, have their exact counterpart in the different varieties of porphy¬
rites. The microscopical characters of the phenocrysts in the corre¬
sponding varieties of porphyrites and of the intruded andesites and
dacites are identical. The character of the various groundmasses, how¬
ever, is different in the two groups, being more highly crystalline in the
porphyrites — many of the andesites being glassy. Many of the finer
grained diorites have a habit, derived from the distribution of the ferro-
magnesian silicates and larger feldspars, which resembles that of some
of the andesites and dacites which correspond to them chemically.

652

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

Finally, the study of the chemical composition of the intrusive rocks
of Electric Peak and of the volcanic rocks of Sepulchre Mountain
proves that these two groups of rocks have identical chemical composi¬
tions, for the varieties that have been analyzed are but a few of the many
mineralogical and structural modifications assumed by these magmas
on cooling. The analyses serve as indications of the range of the chem¬
ical variability of these magmas.

From the geological structure of the region, then ; from the correspond¬
ence between the order of eruption of the two series of rocks; from the
resemblance of a large part of the rocks of both series, macroscopically
and microscopically, and from the chemical identity of all the rocks of
both groups, it is conclusively demonstrated that:

I. The volcanic rocks of Sepulchre Mountain and the intrusive rocks
of Electric Peak were originally continuous geological bodies.

II. The former were forced through the conduit at Electric Peak
during a series of more or less interrupted eruption.

III. The great amount of heat imparted to the surrounding rocks
was due to the frequent passage of molten lava through this conduit.

We have, then, in this region the remnant of a volcano, which has
been fractured across its conduit, has been faulted and considerably
eroded; and which presents for investigation on the one hand, the
lower portion of its accumulated debris of lavas, with a part of the upper
end of the conduit filled with the final intrusions; and on the other
hand, a section of the conduit within the sedimentary strata upon
which the volcano was built.

IDDINGS.]

COMPARISON OF THE ROCKS.

653

CORRELATION OF THE ROCKS ON A CHEMICAL BASIS.

Correlating the two groups of rocks according to their chemical
composition and arranging them as in Table XVII, we see that the
hornblende-mica-andesites, Xos. 95 and 102, are the equivalents of the
quartz-mica-diorites, Xos. 215, 213, 205, 227, and 223, and of the quartz-
pyroxene-mica-diorite, Xo. 211. The dacites, Xos. 129, 131, are the
equivalents of the quartz -mica-diorite-porphyrites, Xos. 233 and 230.
The hornblende-pyroxene-andesites and the pyroxene-andesites, Xos.
33, 80, 20, 2, and 21, are the equivalents of the coarse grained pyroxene-
mica-diorite, Xo. 197, with variable percentage of quartz, and of the fine
grained diorites, Xos. 170 and 177, and of a fine grained facies, Xo. 171.

The dacites and hornblende-mica-andesites included within this
correlation are intruded bodies within the breccia of Sepulchre Moun¬
tain, and have the same mineral composition as the corresponding
porpliyrites and diorites of Electric Peak. They differ from them in
structure and degree of crystallization, the details of which have
already been described in earlier parts of this paper.

The glassy andesite with pyroxene and hornblende phenocrysts, how¬
ever, present the utmost contrast to the chemically equivalent, coarsely
crystalline diorites. In the former the hypersthene, augite, hornblende
and plagioclase are sharply defined, idiomorphic crystals in a ground-
mass of glass, which is crowded with microlites of plagioclase and
pyroxene, besides grains of magnetite. The hornblende is brown,
occasionally red, and the other phenocrysts have all the microscopical
characters which distinguish their occurrence in glassy rocks. In the
diorite the hornblende is green, in some cases brown ; and the hyper¬
sthene, augite and hornblende are accompanied by biotite, and are all
intergrown in the most intricate manner, with evidence that they
commenced to crystallize in the order just given. The labradorite is
often clouded with minute opaque particles, which are characteristic of
its occurrence in many diorites ; it is surrounded by a shell of more
alkaline plagioclase, which with occasional individuals of orthoclase
and considerable quartz, closed the crystallization of the magma.
Magnetite, apatite and zircon are the accessory minerals. The quartz
contains fluid inclusions, which complete the correspondence of this
diorite with typical diorites of other regions.

From the structure of this region, which has been so finely exposed
by faulting and erosion, it is evident that of the different magmas erupted
a part found their way into vertical fissures and took the form of dikes;
part reached the surface and became lava flows and breccias, while other
portions remained in the conduit. Therefore the various portions of
the magmas solidified under a variety of physical conditions, imposed by
the different geological environment of each, the most strongly con¬
trasted of which were the rapid cooling of the surface flows under very
slight pressure, and the extremely slow cooling of the magmas remain¬
ing within the conduits under somewhat greater pressure.

654

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

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clase.

Table XVIII. — ('orrelation of the grades <>J crystallization of the rocks from Sepulchre Mountain and Electric Peak.

Grades
of crystalliza¬
tion.

Sepulchre Mountain.

Electric

Peak.

Breccias.

Dike rocks.

Stock rocks.

Bi.

b2.

b3.

b4.

b5.

1 D,.

D„

Dg.

d4.

Dfl.

IV-

Du-

IV.

dj.

d2.

ds-

d4.

d«.

d6.

<17.

dg-

d9.J

•V-

dji-

Sj.

s2.

83.

s4.

9 10

31,32

1, 2, 3, 4

5 6 7 8

11.12

14
15, 16

19, 20, 21,
22, 23,
24, 25.
26, 27.

33,34,35

39, 40
41

43, 44,
45, 46.

-i

69, 70
71,72
73, 74
75, 76, 77

90, 91
92, 93

104

47,48,49

106

116, 117
118, 119,

' i .

163

94,95

96, 97, 98

99, 100

107

131

144

164, 165

166, 167

168,169

56 57, 58,

78, 79, 80,
81.

108, 109,

' m

121, 122,

132,

133.

142

59.

60, 61, 62,
63, 64.

105

no, in.

112

123, 124,
125.
126. 127

145. 146

162

147

150

1 1

65, 66

134

148, 149

159,

160.
161

• 50

88, 89

143

153. 154

.. . .

113

135

155

170

101

151, 152

156, 157

171

172

102

139

158

173

174

203
204, 205
206
207, 208
209

128

103

114, 115

129, 130

136

140, 141

216, 217

137

228, 229
230, 231
232, 233
234, 235
236

....

175

176
177,178

218

219

138

179, 180
181
182
183
184, 185
186, 187
188
189,190,
191.
192
i oa

Zo /

210

■

211

238

194

195

196

197

198

199

200
201
202

Zlo

221
222, 223,
224.

214

12 .

Zlt)

225, 226,
227.

. . — .

t5 . ;

. . -■ - — - -

12 gkeol — Face page 655

Grades
of crystalliza-

Breecias.

ks.

B,.

b2.

B4t

9, 10
11. 12
13

1,2, 3,4
5, 6, 7, 8

15,16

19, 20
22
24
26

1 .

12 g-eol — Face pag

21k

219

220

221

228, 229
230, 231
232, 233
234, 235

236

237

238

224.

227.

IDDINGS.]

CRYSTALLIZATION.

655

The effect of this diversity of conditions upon the degree of crytalliza
tion of the various portions of these rocks is well shown in the accomny-
nying Table XVIII, which has been derived from Tables VIII and XIV.

In this table are presented all of the specimens from Sepulchre Moun¬
tain and Electric Peak. They are arranged in four principal divisions :
First, the breccias and lava flows ; second, dikes and larger bodies in¬
truded in these breccias; third, dikes in the Cretaceous strata of Electric
Peak; fourth, the main stock and its immediate apophyses. These
groups are still further subdivided into columns which correspond to
mineralogical differences in the rocks, and bear the same letters as the
mineralogieal subdivisions in Tables III, VIII, XII, and XIII. Conse¬
quently each of the four principal groups has the most basic members
at the extreme left and the most acidic ones at the extreme right. The
mineralogical range is, therefore, repeated four times. The table illus¬
trates a number of facts. It exhibits the relative degree of crystalliza¬
tion of the breccias, lava flows, dikes, and stock rocks, and shows that
a great number of intermediate steps can be recognized between the
most glassy andesite and the coarsest diorite. It shows that the dike
rocks furnish the connecting link between these two extremes, aud that
the dike rocks of Electric Peak have the same range of grain as the ma¬
jority of those of Sepulchre Mountain. But many of those at Sepulchre
Mountain are still finer grained and some are glassy, being vesicular
also. Between these rocks there is the closest possible resemblance
macroscopically, and the two groups might have been described con¬
jointly so far as their petrographical characters were concerned. The
variation of grain within each of the four principal divisions is very
significant when taken in connection with the geological occurrence of
the different rocks. The limited range of variation in the first group
is in accord with the fact that all of these rocks are surface ejectamenta.
The range in the third group from more crystalline basic rocks to less
crystalline acid rocks, as already pointed out on page 621, shows the
greater tendency of the basic rocks to crystallize. And since the dikes
here represented are nearly the same size, this variation of grain cor¬
responds to differences in the cnemical composition of the rocks. On
the contrary the variations in the second group indicate a slightly
greater crystallization of the acid rocks. This, however, is due to the
fact that the basic rocks in this group, with a few exceptions, occur in
small dikes, while the acid rocks for the most part form broad intruded
bodies a number of hundred feet wide. In these cases the size of the
mass has had more influence on the degree of crystallization than the
chemical composition of the magma has had. In the fourth group the
basic rocks exhibit a wider range of grain than the acidic, being much
coarser and also considerably finer grained than the latter. This arises
from the fact that the basic rocks form a much larger mass and exhibit
great variation of grain, having fine grained facies that have been fully
discussed in an earlier part of this paper.

656

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

These Tertiary diorites and others that cut the volcanic lavas m
several localities in this region correspond to the andesdiorites and
andesgranites of Stelzner, who described stocks of granular rocks pene¬
trating the andesitic tuffs in the Argentine Republic. The study of
these Tertiary granular rocks led him to the conclusion that the degree
of crystallization of eruptive rocks is in no way dependent on their age,
but depends on the physical conditions under which the mineralogical
differentiation and the cooling of the magma took place.1

From the study and comparison of the chemical analyses of the two
groups of rocks under investigation it is demonstrated that the magmas
that reached the surface of the earth in this place had exactly the same
chemical composition as those which remained inclosed within the
sedimentary strata. It proves with equal clearness that the different
conditions attending the final consolidation of the ejected and of the
intruded magmas affected not only their crystalline structure , hut their
essential mineral composition. The most marked illustration of this is
in the occurrence of biotite in the two series. In the volcanic rocks of
this locality biotite is an essential constituent of the more siliceous
varieties, and is only rarely found as an accessory constituent of the
varieties with less than (11 per cent of silica. In the intrusive rocks it
is an essential constituent of all the coarse grained varieties, even the
most basic. In the finer grained porphyritic forms it is a constituent
of the groundmass to a variable extent. The second most noticeable
difference is the presence of considerable quartz in the coarse grained
forms of the basic magma and its absence from the volcanic forms of
the same magmas.

From these observations, then, we see that in this region there are
chemically identical rocks which have distinctly different mineral com¬
positions, but which were once parts of a continuous body of molten
magma. We are led, therefore, to the conclusion that —

The molecules in a chemically homogeneous fluid magma combine in vari¬
ous ways , and form quite different associations of silicate minera ls , pro¬
ducing miner alogically different rocks.2

The bearing of these facts upon the question of the classification of
igneous rocks is that, since different portions of a large body of a chemi¬
cally uniform magma may assume a variety of geological forms within

1 Alfred Stelzner : Beitrage zur Geologic und Paleontologie der Argentinischen Republik. Cassel
and Berlin, 1885, p. 207.

“ Sie (die Andengesteine) wird uns, wic ieh meinerseits glaube, immer mehr und melir erkennen las-
son, dass die grbssere Oder geringere Krystallinitat eruptiver Gesteiue keiueswegs, wie man so lange
und so hartnackig behauptet hat, von dem Alter der letzteren abhangig ist, sondern lediglioh von den
pliysikalischen Umstanden, outer denen die mineraliselie Dift'erenzirung und Erkaltung der gluth-
fliissigen Magmen vor sicli ging.”

2 This conclusion is the same as that stated by Justus Roth:

“Eskonnen mineralogisch ganz verseliiedene Gesteine in diesel be Gruppe gehdren, denn feurig-
flussige Mas sen von gleicher oder sehr nahe gleicher chemischer Zusammensetzung konnen in verschiedene
Mineralien auseinander fallen. Die TTrsachen, well lie diese Erscheinung bedingen, lassen sieh koch-
stens muthmassen und mogen in XTnterschiedendes Druckes, der Temperatur, des umgebenden Mediums
der Unterlage u. s. w. gesucht werden.” Die Gesteius-Analysen in tabellarischer tfbersioht und
mit kritischen Erlauterungen. Berlin, 1861. p. xxi.

iddings.] MINERALOGICAL DIFFERENCES. 657

the earth’s crust or upon its surface and may crystallize into rocks with
different mineral composition, it is more proper to consider intrusive
and effusive rocks that have like chemical composition as corresponding
or equivalent rocks than those forms of the two series that have similar
mineral composition. Thus we would not say that certain volcanic
rocks which are the equivalents of certain intrusive ones differ from
them chemically by such and such variations among the oxides, for the
term equivalent would then simply refer to their mineralogical character,
and Ave might be comparing portions of totally different magmas that had
no geological connection with one another. Used in the other sense,
Ave should say that certain volcanic rocks differ from their correspond¬
ing or equivalen t intrusive rocks by the presence or absence of certain
minerals, and in this way we would be grouping together the extrusive
and intrusive portions of the same body of magma. The classification
would then rest on a common geological and chemical basis.

In this region of Electric Peak and Sepulchre Mountain the greatest
mineralogical differences accompany the greatest differences in structure
or degree of crystallization; hence Ave may assume that the causes lead¬
ing to each are coexistent. The source of these causes must be sought
in the differences of geological environment, and these affect the rate
at which the heat escapes from the magmas and the pressure they ex¬
perience during crystallization.

It is to be remarked that the most essential mineralogical difference
betAveen the intruded rocks and their chemically equivalent extrusive
forms is the much greater development of biotite and quartz in the in¬
truded rocks; these minerals being abundant even in the basic intru¬
sions and absent from their basic volcanic equivalents. That their
simultaneous development is naturally to be expected in many cases is
evident from a consideration of the character of their chemical mole¬
cules and that of other minerals common to these rocks. For if we
assume that biotite is made up of two molecules, K and M correspond¬
ing respectively to Kc AlfiSi(;024 and R12Si6 ( )24, and compare these with the
molecules of orthoclase, K2Al2Si60]6, of olivine, R2Si04, and of hyper-
stliene RSi03, Ave see that molecules Avliich under some conditions might
have taken the form of olivine or hypersthene and potash-feldspar, Avhicli
latter may have entered into combination Avith lime-soda feldspar mole¬
cules to form somewhat alkaline feldspars, may under other conditions
combine as biotite with the separation of free silica or quartz ; in which
case also the feldspars of the rock Avould be less alkaline.

Another mineralogical difference between the two groups of rocks
just mentioned is the greater development of hornblende in the in¬
truded rocks in place of augite, which is chemically its equivalent,
though it has not been determined Avhether in this case the hornblende
of the diorite has precisely the same composition as the augite of the
andesite. The probability is that there are slight differences between
them.

12 GrEOL - 42

658

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

EFFECT OF MINERALIZING AGENTS.

The crystallization of quartz, biotite, and hornblende in fused magmas,
according to our present knowledge, requires the assistance of a mineral¬
izing agent ; for it has been demonstrated by synthetical research that
these minerals will not crystallize into the forms they assume in igneous
rocks when their chemical constituents are fused and simply allowed to
cool under ordinary atmospheric conditions. But they have been pro¬
duced artificially with the aid of the mineralizing action of water and
other vapors. Now there is ample evidence both in the ejected lavas and
in the coarsely crystallized rocks in the conduit that water vapor was
uniformly and generally distributed through the whole series of molten
magmas, and there is no evidence that there existed in the magmas
which stopped within the conduit any more or different vapors than
those which existed in the magmas that reached the surface. Hence
we conclude that :

The efficacy of these absorbed vapors as mineralizing agents was in¬
creased by the conditions attending the solidification of the magmas within
the conduit.

Moreover, if it is necessary, as advocated by the French geologists,
MM. Michel Levy,1 de Lapparent2 and others, to refer the crystalli¬
zation of certain minerals, as quartz, to the mineralizing influence of
absorbed vapors, it is evident that the required mineralizing agent is
universally present in sufficient quantities, since there are no instances
where a magma of the requisite chemical composition has failed to
crystallize completely with the development of quartz when subjected to
the proper physical conditions.

However, it is probable that differences in the amount or in the kind
of mineralizing agents produce differences in the degree or nature of
the crystallization of similar magmas which have solidified with the
same geological environment.

It has been suggested by Dr. H. J. Johnston-Lavis 3 that the nature
of the rocks surrounding a conduit through which molten magmas
pass materially affects the amount and character of the vapors intro¬
duced into these magmas, which will vary as the surrounding rocks are
more or less porous and are saturated with different kinds of waters.
The effect of these vapors on the structure and composition of igneous
rocks is also discussed by the same writer.

The effect of differences in the amount of the mineralizer in a single
magma is well illustrated in the structure of the obsidian at Obsidian
Cliff, Yellowstone National Park,4 where the alternating layers of

1 “Structures et Classification ties Roches kruptives.” Paris, 1889, pp. 5 and 12.

2 Revue des Questions Scientifiqnes. Paris, 1888, p. 36.

3 “The Relationship of the Structure of Rooks to the Conditions of their Formation.” Sci. Proc. of
the Royal Dublin Soc., vol. 5 (n. s.), part 3, July, 1886, pp. 113 to 155.

4 Obsidian Cliff-, Yellowstone National Park, by J. P. Iddings. Seventh Annual Report of the
Director of the U. S. Geological Survey, Washington, D, C., 1888, p. 287.

IDDINOS.]

MINERALIZING AGENTS.

659

holocrystalline and glassy rock appear to be unquestionably due to the
irregular distribution through the magma of vapors, which in the upper
portion of the flow have produced alternating layers of pumice and
compact glass. The mineralizing agent was present, however, in the
alternate glassy layers as well as in the crystallized or in the pumiceous
ones, for in the highest portion of the flow the whole mass is pumiceous
but in different degrees, and the presence of absorbed vapors may be
detected chemically and physically in the compact layers. Its amount,
however, was not sufficient to produce complete crystallization under
the attendant physical conditions. Its effectiveness in this case was
controlled by the geological occurrence of the magma.

It is to be observed, in addition, that whatever the mineralizing
vapors in acidic magmas may be, there is the same evidence of their
existence in intermediate and in basic magmas, whether we investigate
them chemically or physically, or study the phenomena of their geolog¬
ical occurrence. There are even indications of their greater abundance
in the basic lavas, many of whose glasses contain a high percentage of
water, and the highly vesicular character of whose lava-flows is univer¬
sal. Nor are the geological evidences less conclusive that demonstrate
the existence of abundant explosive agents in the basaltic and andes¬
itic magmas that have hurled their shattered masses over broad areas of
country, and have piled vast accumulations of basaltic breccia through¬
out our western territory.

Nevertheless, with all these evidences of the universal presence of
mineralizing agents in basic magmas, we do not recognize their influence
upon the microstructure or crystallization of basic lavas. We may
assume, then, that in the majority of these cases they have no influence.

But when the basic magmas become coarsely crystalline, and separate
into minerals, the cystallization of some of which we have already re¬
ferred to the action of mineralizing vapors, we may logically assume
that in these cases the absorbed vapors have influenced the crystalliza¬
tion of the magmas.

If this reasoning is correct, then the action of mineralizers upon basic
magmas is controlled by the physical conditions under which they solid¬
ify-

Finally, if mineralizing agents are universally present in igneous
magmas, and if their action, so far as we can observe it, is controlled
by the physical conditions imposed by the geological history of each
eruption, we should not regard the presence or absence of certain min¬
erals, relegated to the influence of mineralizing agents, as evidence of
the presence or absence of these agents in the molten magma; but we
should see in it the evidence of special conditions controlling the solid¬
ification of the magma, and should seek the fundamental causes of the
mineralogical and structural variations of a rock in the geological his¬
tory of its particular eruption.

660

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

APPLICATION TO THE CLASSIFICATION OF IGNEOUS ROCKS.

The facts brought out by the study of this occurrence of igneous
rocks seem to the writer to have a direct application to the problem of
the general classification and description of igneous rocks. For while
this occurrence cannot be regarded as a representative of all others,
still it typifies to a very great extent the relations that exist between
intruded magmas and their extrusive forms.

We have observed that in this locality a series of molten magmas
was erupted through a common conduit during a succession of fractur¬
ings of the sedimentary strata. These magmas not only differed among
themselves chemically, but varied somewhat in different portions of one
and the same body, producing chemical facies of the main body of a
particular rock mass.

When we consider the variations in the chemical composition and
structure, and mineral constitution of a continuous geological body,
such as may occur along an irregularly shaped crevice or system of
fissures from their narrow and remote terminations toward their wider
junctions with the main conduit, as well as the interpenetration and
welding of older and newer portions of the magmas filling the conduit,
with their consequent transitions in some places, and sharply marked
intersections or contacts in others, we see that the resulting mass of
igneous rocks preseuts a geological body whose complexity exceeds
that of the most intricate web of vegetable organism.

Chemically considered there is a wide range of composition embrac¬
ing the middle of the whole series of igneous rocks of the surrounding
region. In percentage of silica they range from 53 per cent to 69 per
cent; and if certain contemporaneous intruded rocks in the immediate
neighborhood be included, the range of variation in the intrusive rocks
is about the same as that of the volcanic rocks, from 48 per cent to 74
per cent.

Structurally, there are all forms from coarsely granular to porphyritic
glassy, including all possible intermediate structures.

Mineralogically, there are all the combinations existing in this region,
from that of quartz, alkali-feldspar, and mica, to that of basic lirne-
soda-feldspar and pyroxene, with a little olivine.

Hence the rocks include granite, granite-porphyry, quartz-porphyry,
and rhyolite; diorite, quartz-mica-diorite, diorite-porphyrite, pyroxene-
porphyrite, hornblende-mica- andesite, hornblende-andesite, pyroxene-
andesite, dacite, and basalt. The glassy form of the granite-porphyry
or of the quartz-diorite-porphyrite is not found in the immediate vicin¬
ity of Sepulchre Mountaiu, but occurs in the region south as a modifi¬
cation of the rhyolite at the Upper Geyser Basin. The still more silice¬
ous rhyolite of Sepulchre Mountain is represented by a facies of the
microgranite at Echo Peak, a point 12 miles south of Electric Peak.

Notwithstanding the range of structural variations within the miner-
alogical groups just mentioned, it is not possible to trace in exposure

IDDINGS.]

BASIS OP CLASSIFICATION.

661

any one group through this series of structural variations. It becomes
evident that while a perfectly continuous body may, and undoubtedly
does in some instances, connect the glassy form of a consolidated
magma with a coarsely granular form through intermediate stages
of crystalline structure, yet the connected occurrence of all these
forms is not a necessity, and in fact does not always exist. For if we
consider the course of eruption of a magma that varies in its chemical
composition, or the successive outbursts of a series of magmas that
differ chemically from one another, we see that if a basic magma which
has reached the surface of the earth and has produced glassy rocks —
andesites — and has filled the disrupted strata with intruded sheets and
dikes of porphyrite, and stands in the conduit under conditions which
would eventually produce coarse grained diorite — if a basic magma in
this stage of solidification be followed through the same conduit by a
more siliceous magma, then the viscous body within the conduit would
be forced out on the surface and its place occupied by the later magma,
which would thus sever the connection between the intruded sheets or
dikes and the surface lavas, and would deprive both of a coarse grained
equivalent. Moreover, it is well known that in volcanic regions it usu¬
ally happens that the lava that flows from a cone severs its connection
with the molten magma in the crater, which often descends again within
the conduit.

In the case of a great body of magma which varied in composition
during a prolonged eruption, so that the first portion of it differed con¬
siderably from the last portion, the surface flows and earliest intrusions,
if continuously connected with the deep-seated portion, would grade
into it not only through a variety of structural modifications, but
through a series of chemical and mineralogical variations, so that their
actual geological connection would be with a coarse grained rock of a
different type.

Furthermore, the magmas, which can be recognized at this locality
as having constituted independent eruptions, not only differ in their
chemical composition from one another, but vary to such an extent
within their own mass that the chemical facies of one body correspond
to the main portion of another. Hence the members of the series over¬
lap one another in composition. Consequently a classification or con¬
sideration of the various forms of rocks of the same chemical composi¬
tion involves in this case the artificial grouping of parts and facies of
different geological bodies.

In the study and discussion of the igneous rocks of this region it has
been found that the natural and most intimate grouping of the rocks
brings together varieties of the surface or extrusive rocks which differ
chemically, mineralogical ly, and to a certain extent structurally. In
another group it brings together varieties of coarse grained rocks
which vary chemically, mineralogically, and to a certain extent struc¬
turally. And in another group it presents a collection of intruded

662

ELECTRIC PEAK AND SEPULCHRE MOUNTAIN.

sheets and dikes, with similar chemical and mineralogical variations,
and another range of structural variations. The distinction between
these groups is the range of the structural variations in each, which is
coupled with their mode of occurrence. But here also is an overlapping
of the groups, there being no sharp line between the first and second,
or between the second and third. This, however, is not so much of an
objection to the treatment of the subject as that which would follow
a grouping upon a chemical basis, for the latter would still leave un¬
reconciled the mineralogical variations that are dependent on the mode
of occurrence. It is this complicated relationship which has rendered
a clear and comprehensive description of the occurrences so difficult.

Since this complication of relationships between all varieties of
igneous rocks exists universally, as it has been shown to exist at Elec¬
tric Peak and Sepulchre Mountain; and since the classification of
igneous rocks along any single line of relationship can not be a simple
and at the same time a natural one, it seems to the writer that the
most satisfactory treatment of the subject brings together into groups for
purposes of description rocks of similar or allied structures, but of
various mineral and chemical compositions.

This grouping appears the more rational when it is considered that
the chemical variability of rock magmas which leads to the formation
of local modifications of rocks or to their chemical facies is, as the
writer believes and hopes to be able to demonstrate at another time,
. the underlying principle which gives rise to the chemical differences
among the rocks themselves. In other words, the chemical differences
of igneous rocks are the result of a chemical differentiation of a gen¬
eral magma. And in a very special manner all of the igneous rocks of
any locality are so intimately related to one another chemically that
there is far more reason for considering them as a complex chemical
unit than as a number of independent, well defined magmas.

It is to be remarked, moreover, that if, as demonstrated in this paper,
the conditions attending or controlling the crystallization of igneous
magmas, whether affecting simply the rate of cooling, or acting through
the medium of a mineralizing agent within the magma itself — if these
conditions determine the species and character of the minerals developed,
as well as the crystalline structure of the rock, then the grouping to¬
gether of rocks of allied structures unites those rocks in which the
mineralogical characteristics bear a certain relation to the chemical com¬
position, which relation is different from that which exists in rocks that
have crystallized under different conditions. There is, therefore, in such
a grouping more than the similarity of structure or the geological asso¬
ciation of the rocks in the field.

While the grouping of igneous rocks on a basis of crystalline struc¬
ture, which would bring together coarse grained forms, medium grained
forms, and extremely fine grained and glassy ones, is in a very large
measure equivalent to classifying them on a geological basis, still the

IDDINGS.]

CRYSTALLINE STRUCTURE.

precise connection between the crystalline structure and geological oc¬
currence of all igneous rocks is not so uniform that it can be expressed
in simple terms. ] It is not, in fact, the particular mode of occurrence of
a rock, geologically considered, that determines its structure, but the
physical conditions attending its eruption and solidification. And since
these physical conditions may be occasioned by somewhat different geo¬
logical circumstances, the resulting similar structures maybe found with
different geological environment. That is, a large mass of magma deep
within the earth’s crust may attain a crystalline character through the
cooling of so large an inclosed mass, which may be more closely related,
if not identical, to the crystallization of a much smaller mass that has
solidified within highly heated rock walls, than it is to the structure of
an equally large mass that has been chilled by being forced a longer
distance through colder rocks, or that has solidified on the surface of
the earth. As another example, narrow bodies of magma which have
solidified at very much the same distance from the surface of the earth
differ widely in their crystalline structure, according to the temperature
of the rocks surrounding them at the time of their consolidation.

Recognizing, then, the intricacies of these geological and physical re¬
lations, it seems to the writer advisable to base the classification of
igneous rocks on that character which may be determined with cer¬
tainty from the rocks themselves, namely, the crystalline structure, and
which, at the same time, is to so high a degree an exponent both of the
chemical composition of the magmas and of the physical and geological
conditions attending their solidification.

'Compare in this connection the conclusions of M. Michel L6vy: “Ainsi, en resumd, les condi¬
tions de gisement nous paraissent en relations trop complexes avec les facteurs de la cristallisation pour
pouvoir etre substituees, comme entree de classification, 4 la notion plus pr6cise et toujours pr6sente
de la structure des roches.”— Structures et Classification des Eoches Eruptives. Paris, 1889, p. 10.

APPENDIX

Owing to tlie fact that the specimens from Electric Peak and Sepul¬
chre Mountain, which have been described in this paper, were collected
at various times during a number of years in which these localities were
visited, and consequently occur in widely separated parts of the original
collection of rocks from the Yellowstone National Park, they bear num¬
bers which range from 2 to 3,910. The use of these numbers tends to
confuse the reader, and a new series of consecutive numbers has been
substituted for them iu this paper. Since the new series has no ex¬
istence in actual fact, it is deemed advisable to publish a list of the
original numbers with their new equivalents, in order that the work
bestowed on this study may be followed up or reviewed by anyone
wishing to investigate the subject for his own purposes. The catalogue
referred to is given in Table XIX.

Table XIX. — Original collection numbers of the specimens described in this paper.

New.

Field.

New.

Field.

New.

Field.

New.

Field.

New.

Field.

Nos.

Nos'.

Nos.

3870

3858

226

145

2732

193

2680c

221

3855

3896

146

2720

194

2672

3891

3889

695

147

3205

195

3194

323

3906

100

3013

148

2725

196

2661

3871

3883

101

2739

149

2726

197

2669

321

3860

102

394

150

2711

198

2675

332

13856

103

3014

151

2714

199

2702

3687

1385a

104

3701

152

2716

200

2686

3857

3866

105

3899

153

2659

201

3006

322

3694

106

3854

154

2713

202

3012

324

3892

107

3881

155

3206

203

2728

3861

108

3015

156

647

204

2704

3879

3862

109

2737

157

2666

205

2695

3872

3018

110

3686

158

3208

206

2703

395

3856

111

3897

159

2746

207

2685

3874

325

112

1386

160

2747

208

2715

392

2738

113

2741

161

2705

209

3011

3189a

2743

114

3019

162

2261

210

2682

213

3685

115

3842

163

2697

211

2681

214

3695

116

2744

164

2699

212

2727

217

696

117

3903

165

2698

213

2724

3691

3690

118

2745

166

27105

214

2729

3697

3886

119

3904

167

2709

215

3008

3869

3689

120

3905

168

2710a

216

3224a

3890

3898

121

2742

169

2718

217

32246

3679

3688

122

3678

170

3192

218

3224c

3698

3864

123

3910

171

2679

219

2722

218

3882

124

3682

172

3193a

220

2723

3693

3884

125

3683

173

31936

221

2730

3846

3844

126

701

174

3193c

222

3222

3843

127

3850

175

3193d

223

2676

3696

694

128

3684

176

2673

224

3199'

219

209

129

3017

177

2692

225

3198

220

3020

130

3021

178

2735

226

3195

3876

3692

131

3682

179

3198'

227

2668

3875

3852

132

3022

180

2693

228

2672

215

3700

133

3851

181

2680a

229

2662

210

3849

134

3848

182

26806

230

2670

212

3865

135

3016

183

3193c

231

2671

3895

3908

136

2734

184

3191

232

2749

3887

3699

137

2733

185

2680c

233

3001

2740

3902

138

3209

186

2684

234

3003

3888

3900

139

3009

187

2694

235

3004

3894

3847

140

2708

188

2680d

236

3002

3880

31896

141

2717

189

2674

237

3007

3893

3878

142

2665

190

3199

238

2667

3885

2736

143

2260

191

3193/

3877

211

144

3221

192

3190

664

library

OF THE

UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS.

)

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Geology by the members of the Yellowstone Park Division.
Arnold Hague. Geologist in Charge .

Scalelmae-2mdh.es.

0^^^ _ b— i _ ^=-===-_==^_ I MILE'

CONTOUR INTERVAL 100 FEET.

110° 50

Geological Map

Electric Peak and SepulchreMountain.
Ye ll ows tone National, Park .

Talus or Slide rock.

Rhyolite.

Daciteindikes.

Hornblende-mica -andesitem dikes .

Hornblende -andpyroxene -andesite .
in dikes .

Hornblende and pyroxene -andesite
breccia and flows .

Acidic andesiticbreccia .
Porphyrite in sheets .

I Quartz -mica- diorite-porphyrite
I and quartz -porphyrite .

| Hornblende -mica - porphyrite in dikes.

Diorite and pyroxene-p orphyri t e .
Cretaceous .

Jura -Trias.

Carboniferous.

TWELFTH ANNUAL REPORT, PL.LIII

tea.

HARMS A SOM. L rTH Ptt/LA

Uuifirtf* f
OF THE

UNlVLKSlTY of ILLINOIS.

INDEX.

Page.

Abbeville, Miss , exposures of Lafayette

formation near . . 457

Accompanying papers . . 211-664

Administrative reports of chiefs of di¬
visions . 21-210

Ahern, Jeremiah, work of . . - 43,48

Aiken, S. C., Lafayette exposures near... 484

Alabama, topographic work in... . 3

atlas sheets engraved . 7

geologic work in.. . 74-75

configuration of . . 366

“ second bottoms ” of . 387, 389, 391

geologic exposures in. . . 473

ocher in . 506

Alabama River, Columbia deposits on... 391

Lignitic deposits on . 416

Alaska, work in . 59-61

Aldrich, T. H., aid by . 117

Altamaha River, Lafayette exposures on . 484

Altitudes on the fall line . . . 356

Altitudes of physiographic provinces. ... 359

Aluminum, statistics . . 14,131

Anna River, Va., Lafayette deposits on . 488

Animals, effect on soil of . 274-287, 295-296

Antimony, statistics . 13

Appalachian division of geology, work

of . 54-55,78-81

Appalachian province, physiography of. 353
Appalachicola River, Lafayette expo¬
sures near . . 482

Appomattox River, Lafayette exposures

on . 486

Archean division of geology, work of ..54, 67-70

Area surveyed during 1890-’91 . 23

Arid soils, nature of . 306-310

Arizona, topographic work in . 3

atlas sheets engraved . 7

Arkansas, topographic work in . 3, 6, 24, 30

atlas sheets engraved . 7

investigation of zinc and silver de-

positsof. _ _ _ 56

configuration of southeastern . 374

exposures in central . 470

Lafayette formation in . . 471

Columbia formation in . 471

Arkadelphia, Ark., Lafayette exposures

at . 470

Asphaltum, statistics . * . 15,133

Astronomic and computing section, work

of . 31

AtchafalayaBayou, Columbia deposits on 404

Page.

Atlantic coast division of geology, work

of . 66-67

Atlas-sheet areas surveyed _ 44

Atlas sheets engraved _ _ 7-8,32-42

completed during 1890-'91.__ . 23,24

drawn for engraving . . 50-51

in preparation and ready for publica¬
tion . 79

Augusta, Ga. , Lafayette exposures near . 481 . 484
B.

Baker, Marcus, work of _ _ 25

Baldwin, H. L., work of . . .29,30,31,43,47

Baltimore, Columbia formation at . 385

Barnard, E. C., work of . . . 27

Barton, G. H., work of _ _ _ 66,67

Barus, Carl, work of _ _ _ .128, 129

Barytes (crude), statistics . . 15,133

Bashi formation . 417

Bassett, C. C., work of . . 43,48

Baton Rouge, geologic exposures near . . . 395

configuration about . . 431

Bay ley, W. S., work of _ .84, 85, 86, 87, 103

Bayou Pierre, Miss., exposures near _ 440, 441

Bayou Sara, La., exposures near . . 395,430

Beatty, Miss., exposures near . 450

Becker, G. F., work of . 57

report of. . 104-106

Benton, Ky., exposures near . 468

Berne, Ark., exposures near . 470

Bien &Co., engraving contracts with _ 17,32

Bien, Morris, work of . 43,49

Big Black River, Miss., Columbia depos¬
its on . . . 393

Grand Gulf deposits on . 408

early history of. . 410

Lafayette deposits on. . 441

Big Hatchie River, Tenn. , exposures near. 464

Biloxi sands, definition of . . . 394

Birmingham, Ky., exposures at . . 468

Black prairies, characteristics of . 375

origin of . 405

Blow, A. A., acknowledgments to . 97

Bluff lignite, reference to . . . 416

Boaz, Ky., exposures at . . 467

Bolivar, Tenn., configuration about . 465

Borax, statistics . .15, 133

Boyle, C. B., work of. . 113

Brazos River, Columbia deposits on _ 406

“ Breaks,” definition of . . . 434

Broadhead, G. C., cited on position of

Potsdam sandstone . 556

665

666

INDEX.

Page.

Bromine, statistics . 15, 133

Brown, J. Stanley, work of . .,100, 101, 102

Brown, W. Q., work of.. . 100,101

Buckshot lands, origin of . . 400

Buell, I. M., work of . 89

Buhrstone, features of the . 413

Buhrstones, statistics . . . 132

Building stone, statistics . 14, 132

Bulls Mountain, Md., significance of . 363

Burns, Frank, work of . 115, 117

Calaveras, Tex., gravels at . 472

Calcasieu prairies . . 471

California, topographic work in _ ....3,6,45

atlas sheets engraved . . 7

geologic work in . . . .... 57

division of geology, work of . 57, 104-106

Call. R. E. , cited on the synonymy of the

Lafayette . 500

Calvin, S., cited on faunal variations _ 383

Cambrian faunas . 537

Cambrian rocks of North America, char¬
acter and relations of . 536-540

Atlantic coast province _ 541,542-546-548

Appalachian province . .542, 543, 548-551

Interior Continental province 543.551-554,555

Rocky Mountain province . 543

Cambrian time, North America during. .523-568
Cambrian and Silurian life, researches

in . . . . . . . 10, 11

Camden series, the . . . 417

Camden, Ky., deposits about... . 466

Carbondale, Ill., Lafayette exposures

near . 469

Carrollton, Miss., exposures near . 449

Cascade division of geology, work of. 57, 100-103

Cement, statistics . 15

Cenozoic invertebrates, work on . 11

Cenozoic invertebrate paleontology, work

of division of . 115-118

Cenozoic rocks, work on . 11

Center Point, Ark., Lafayette exposures

near . 470

Ceratopsidas (a Laramie reptile), collec¬
tion and examination of remains

of . . . . 118, 119

Chamberlin, T. C., work of . . 55. 65

report of . 88-90

cited on the Lafayette . 470

cited on the synonymy of the Lafay¬
ette . 500

cited on Pleistocene subsidence . 515

cited on the geography of the Kewee-

nawan and Potsdam periods _ 554-555

cited on Paleozoic topography _ 561

Chapman, R. H., work of . 43,45

Charleston, Miss., Lafayette exposure

near . 453

Chatard, Thomas M., work of . 13,82, 127, 128

Chattahoochee River, Columbia deposits

on . 390

Lignitic deposits on . 417

Columbia and Lafayette exposures

on . 478

Page.

Chemistry and physics, work in ..13-14, 127-129

Cherokee Ridge, Ga„ exposure in . 484

Chesapeake Bay, topographic work on. . . 6

Chesapeake formation. . 410-412

Chickasaw Bluffs, features of... . 369

Chickasawhay River, Grand Gulf de¬
posits on . 409

Chief Signal Officer, acknowledgments to. 19
Chilhowee Mountain, Tenn., geologic

work on . 55

Choctaw Bluffs, features of . . . 369

Chrome iron ore, statistics . 15,131

Claiborne-Meridian, the . . . 413-415

Clark River, Ky., deposits on . 468

Clark, W. B„ work of . 11,64

aid by . 72

Clarke, F. W., work of . 13-14, 103

report of . . . . 1 27-1 29

Clays (siliceous) of the Lafayette forma¬
tion . 458

Coal fields of Montana, work in . 95

Coast and Geodetic Survey, acknowledg¬
ments to superintendent of . 19

astronomic determinations by . 31

Coastal plain, configuration of _ 354-356,360

division into six districts . 379

structure of . . . 380

Cobalt oxide, statistics . . .15, 13j

Coffee sand, the . 419

Collections of fossils, etc., belonging to
Geological Survey located at other

places than Washington . 108-110

Colorado, topographic work in. . 6, 45

atlas sheets engraved . . 7

division of geology, work of _ 56-57, 96-99

Colorado River, Texas, Columbia depos¬
its on . 406

Color changes in the Lafayette . 476

Columbia, S. C., exposures near . 388, 484

Columbia formation, studies of . 71, 384-407

correlation of deposits of... . 402

exposures in Arkansas . 471

deposition of. . 514

Columbia period, shore lines of . 394,452

history of the . 401

Columbus, Ga., Columbia exposures

near . . 390, 478

Columbus, Ky., exposures at . 467

Condon, Thos., aid by . 117

Congaree River, exposures on.. . 484

Connecticut, topographic work in ....3, 5, 24, 25

atlas sheets engraved . 7

geologic work in . 62, 66, 67

Conrad, T., cited on the coastal plain _ 380

Continental movements . 518

Cook, G. H. , cited on the coastal plain ... 380

cited on Cretaceous deposits . 421

Cooper’s Wells, Miss., Lafayette deposits

at . 448

Copper, statistics . . 14,130

Corpus Christi, Tex., exposures near _ 405

Correlation, geologic work of division of. 63-65

Corundum, statistics . 15

Cottondale, Ala., exposures at.. . 474

Crater, the, (Va.) Lafayette deposits at.. 487

INDEX.

667

Page.

Cretaceous deposits, upper . 419

Cretaceous formations of North America

studies of . . . .11, 112, 113

Croffut, W. A., work of . 17

report of . 141,142

Crosby, W. O , cited on primordial slates

on the coast of Maine . 548

Cross, Whitman, work of . 98, 99, 103

Crowell, Robert, aid by . 68

Crowley Ridge, Ark., features of . . 374

Crystalline and metamorphic rocks of

New England, work on . . 54

Cumberland plateau, physiography of. 353

Cumberland River, deposits near . . 469

Cummin, R. D., work of . . . 26

Curtice, Cooper, work of. . 100-101, 105, 111

Dale, T. Nelson, work of . .69,107

Dali, W. H„ work of... 11. 52, 53, 58, 64, 83, 84, 100,

101,115-118

cited on Chesapeake fauna . . 411

Dana, J. D., cited on pre-Cambrian pro¬
taxis of northeastern North Am¬
erica . 540

cited on Paleozoic topography _ 557-560

Darton, Nelson H., work of . 72,76-77,79

quoted on the Chesapeake formation . 41 1
quoted on the Pamunkey formation. 418

quoted on the Severn formation . 421

section constructed by . . 426

cited on Lafayette fossils . . 487

quoted on the Lafayette formation . . 488

photograph by . . 488

cited on the synonymy of the Lafay¬
ette... . 500

Darwin, C. C., work of . 17

report of . 142-144

Davis, A. P., work of . 43,48

Davis, L. H., work of . . 66,67

Davis, W. M., work of . 62

cited on peneplains . . 369

cited on base-level period . . . 421

Day, David T., report of . 129-131

Delaware, atlas sheets engraved _ 7

configuration of . 360-362

Delaware River, Columbia deposits on.. 385

Delta, colloquial use of term . . 371,374

Devonian and Carboniferous rocks, work

on correlation of . 11

Diller, J. S., work of. . 11,57,58

report of . . ..100-103

Disbursements, table showing classifica¬
tion of . 18

western division of topography, where

and by whom made . 52

list of vouchers for . . . 146-210

District of Columbia, topographic work

in . 3

atlas sheets engraved . 7

Doctor town, Ga., exposure at . 484

Dodge, R. E., work of . 66

Douglas, E. M., work of . 42,45

Drafting Division, work of . 31

Dresden, Tenn., exposures about.. . 466

Page.

Duck Hill, Miss., exposures near . 451

Dumble, E. T., cited on the synonymy of

the Lafayette . 500

Dunnington, A. F., work of . 42,43, 45,49

Durant, Miss., exposures near . 450

Eakins, L. G., work of . 128

Earthquake, New Madrid, effects of _ 370,375

Eastern division of topography, work

of . 23-32

Editorial division, work of . 141-142

Eldridge, George H., work of. 9, 53, 55,58,71, 98,99

report of. . 82-84

Electric Peak, Yellowstone National

Park, eruptive rocks of . . 577-662

location and altitude of.... . 578

geologic structure and history . 578-579

dikes in . 581

geological description of.. . .579-582

porphyrite and porphyry of... . 582-584

sheet rocks of . .584-586

dike and stock rocks of . . 586-587

mineral and chemical composition of

rocks of.. . .619-632

Electric Peak and Sepulchre Mountain,
Yellowstone National Park, com¬
parison of rocks of... . 650-652

correlation of rock of. . 653-657

Elephant remains in the Columbia . 399

Ellisville, Miss., exposures near . 391,473

Emerson, B. K., work of . . 54-68,69

Emmons, S. F., work of.. . . . 56,57

report of . 96-99

cited on Algonkian rocks of the Rocky

Mountain region . 543

Engraving, contracts for . 32

Engraving and printing, work of divi¬
sion of . . . 16, 17

report of division of . 138-140

Eocene rocks, work on . 11

Erikson, E. T., work of . 84,85

Erosion, modern . 373,443,454

Eruptive rocks of Electric Peak and
Sepulchre Mountain, Yellowstone
National Park, paper by J. P. Id-

dings on . . ...569-664

Eskridge, Miss., exposures near. . 451

Eufala, Ala., exposures near . 479

Eutaw, Ala. , exposures near . 475

Eutaw formation.. . 419

Evans, H. C., & Co., engraving contracts

with . 17,32

Evans & Bartle, engraving contracts

with.... . •_ . . 17,32

Evaporation of surface water, effect on

lower soil of . .258-260

Expenditures, table showing classifica¬
tion of . . 17

list of vouchers for . 146-210

Fall-line, characteristics of.. . 356,357-358

features of, in Texas . 376

Fayette, Miss., exposures near . . 441

668

INDEX.

Page.

Fayette beds . 472

Feldspar, statistics . 15

Ferrugination of the Lafayette . 452

Ferruginous conglomerate . 466

Field work, methods of . 50

Flatonio, Tex., gravel at . 472

Flint, statistics . . . 15

Floodplain of the lower Mississippi . 379

Florida, topographic work in _ _ 4, 24, 28

study of mineral phosphates of . 9

geologic work in - - . - 12, 52, 53

preparation of memoir on geology of. 53

configuration of . 364

geologic exposures in . . 481

division of geology, work of _ .52, 53, 55, 82-84

Fluorspar, statistics . . . 15, 133

Foerste, A. F., work of . . 68,69

Fontaine, Wm. M., work of . . 121, 125

cited on the Potomac formation . 422

cited on the synonymy of the Lafay¬
ette . . 499

Forests as soil preservers . 253-254

Forked Deer River, Tenn., configuration

and deposits on _ 465

Fort Adams, Miss., exposure near . 435,436,

437, 438

Fort Mitchell, Ala., exposures near . 478

Fossil insects, work of division of _ 125-127

Fossils belonging to Geological Survey in
collections at other places than

W ashington . . . — 1 08-1 10

Fossils, from the loess . — 392

Columbia . 399

from the Grand Gulf . . . 409

from the Lafayette . . . 458, 474, 487

Fredericksburg, Va., exposures near - 488

Friendship, Tenn. , exposures near _ 466

Frost, effect on soil of... . 262-268

Gannett, Henry, work of . 5

report of . 23-32

Gannett, S. S., work of . .31,43,49

Gas, natural, statistics . . 15, 132

Geiger, H. R., work of . . 79,81

Geologic branch, work of . . 52-65

Geologic classification, method of _ 380

Geologic correlation, work of division of. 63-65
Geologic history of Lafayette formation,

graphic epitome of . . 520

Geologic maps, in preparation and ready

for publication . . 79

mode of preparation . . 79-80

Geologic work, nature and progress of . . 8-9

Geomorphology, use of, in correlation. . . 382

Georgia, topographic work in . _■ _ 4, 6, 24

atlas sheets engraved . . 7

geologic work in . 54, 78

configuration of . 364

exposures in . 480

Georgiana, Ala., deposits near . . . 477

Gilbert, G. K., work of . 9

report of . 52-65

cited on pre-Silurian stratigraphic

break in North America . 551-552

Gill, DeLancey W., work of . 102

report of . 136-138

Page.

Girard, Ala., exposures near . 478

Glacial geology, work of division of ...55,88-90

Glacial soils . 236-239

Gold, statistics . .14, 130

Goode, R. U., work of . . 30,43,47

Good Hope Hill, exposure at . 488

Gordon, R. O., work of _ _ 30, 43, 47

Gordon Mountain, significance of . 371-372

Grand Bay, Ala., exposures near _ -.. 475

Grand Chain, Lafayette deposits on the . 469

Grand Gulf formation, influence on con¬
figuration . 366

area, position, and characteristics

of . 408-410

correlation of . 409

exposures of . 432

upland topography of . . . 433

Grand Rivers, Ky., deposits near . . 469

Graphite, statistics . ..15,133

Gravel of the Lafayette formation . 506

Gravella, Ala.., gravel deposits at . 477

Greenville, Ala. , exposures near . 477

Greens Cut, Ga., exposure near _ 481

Grindstones, statistics . 15, 132

Griswold, W. T., work of . 43,47

Guerdon, Ark., exposures near . . 470

Gulf of Mexico, subsidence of bed of . 377

“Gulfs” of Southern States, definition of 374, 434
“Guts” of Southern States, definition of. 434
Gypsum, statistics.. . 15,133

Hackett, Merrill, work of . 27

Hague, Arnold, work of . 56

report of . 92-96

Hall, C. W., work of . 84,86,87

Hallock, William, work of . 13—14, 63, 129

Hammond, Wm., aid by . 117

Harper, L. , cited on the coastal plain . . . 380

Harris, Gilbert D., work of . 64,72, 115, 117

Harris & Sons, engraving contracts with. 17, 32

Hatcher, J. B. work of . 119

Hatchetigbee formation . 417,474

Hattiesburg, Miss., exposures near . .391, 408, 439

Hawkins, G. T., work of . . 30

Hayes, C. W., work of . . ..62,78,79,80,81

Hayes, Willard, acknowledgments to _ 534

Health, effect of soils on . . . 340-344

Heathsville, Va., Lafayette fossils from. 487

Heilprin, A., rejection of division of Mio¬
cene by . . 411

Helderberg Mountains, relations of . 353

Hickman, Ky., exposures at . . 467

Hickman group, reference to . . 416

Hickory Valley, section near . 465

Hickory Grove, exposures at . 467

Hilgard, E. W., aid by . . 73

cited on pine meadows . . 368

cited on the coastal plain . 380

cited on the brown loam . 393

cited on the Grand Gulf. . 407, 408, 409

cited on Eocene deposits . . 412,413

cited on the Lignitic . . . 415, 417,474

cited on Cretaceous deposits . 419

section constructed by . 426

cited on Claiborne deposits . 450

INDEX.

669

Page.

Hilgard, E. W.— Continued.

cited on the Lafayette . . . . . . . 457

cited on thickness of Lafayette _ 459

cited on Lafayette clays . . 495

Lafayette formation named by - 498

conference by . 501

Hill, R. T., cited on the Columbia forma¬
tion . 405

cited on the Lignitic... . 417

cited on Cretaceous deposits . . 423

cited on the Lafayette . . .7... 470

cited on the synonomyof the Lafay¬
ette . . 500

conference by . - . 501

cited on Pleistocene lakes . . 518

Hillebrand, W. F., work of .. . 13, 127

Hillers, J. K. , work of . . . 137

Hobbs, W illiam H . , work of . 69

Hog wallows, origin of . . 405

Holly Springs, Miss., exposure near _ 458,459

Holmes, F. S., cited on the coastal plain. 380

Holmes, J. A., aid by . .. . 74,75,76

cited on the Potomac formation _ 422

photograph by _ 484

cited on the Lafayette . 485

conference by . 501

Homochitto River, exposure near _ 440

Homogeny, correlation by . 381

Hopkins, F. V., cited on the Grand Gulf. 409

Hopkins, J. M., aid by . 62

Huntington, Tenn., depositsnear . _. 466

Hyatt, Alpheus, work of . . 11,58, 101

report of _ _ 111-112

Hydrography, work of division of . 134-136

Page.

Jackson, Miss., Columbia deposits near. 394

exposures near . 448

J ackson, Tenn. , Lafayette about . . 466

Jackson limestone of Hilgard . 412

Jacobs, Joseph, work of . . 48-49

James, Joseph F., work of . 106, 107, 111

James River, Columbia formation on _ 386

Chesapeake formation on . _ 411

Lafayette deposits on . 487

Jenney, W. P., work of . . 56

report of . . 90

Jennings, J. H., work of . 25

Johns Hopkins University, cooperation

of . - . . . . 72

J ohnson, Lawrence C. , work of .53, 58, 74, 75, 82, 83

cited on Columbia deposits . .394,432

cited on the Grand Gulf . 409

cited on Eocene deposits . . 412, 413

cited on division of the Lignitic . 416

cited on the Lignitic _ _ 417,474

cited on Cretaceous deposits . 419,422

section constructed by.. . 426

cited on thickness of the Lafayette . . 459

cited on the Tombigbee chalk . 475

cited on the Lafayette . 476

cited on synonymy of Lafayette . 499

Johnson, O. B., aid by _ _ _ _ 116

Johnson, Willard D., work of _ _ _ 43,45

Johnsonville, Tenn., exposures near _ 466

Jura-Trias period, paleontologic work on

rocks of . . . 11

Jiissen, Edmund, work of _ 82,83,84

Idaho, topographic work in . 4, 47

atlas sheets engraved . 7

Iddings, J. P., work of - 92,93,94,95,96,103

paper on eruptive rocks of Electric
Peak and Sepulchre Mountain

by . . ...569-664

Igneous rocks classified _ _ 660-663

Illinois, topographic work in. . . .4, 6. 24, 29

atlas sheets engraved . 7

exposures in southern _ _ 469

Illustrations, work of division of . 16, 136-138

Infusorial earth, statistics . . 15, 133

Insects (fossil), work on . . 12-13

Instruments, work on . 31

Iowa, topographic work in . 4, 6, 24

atlas sheets engraved . . 7

Iron, statistics . 14,130

Iron of the Lafayette formation . 506

Iron ore (chrome), statistics . . . 15, 131

Iron and steel, statistics . 130

Ironstone in the Lafayette . 452

Irrigation reservoir sites, located and

surveyed . 44

platted . 51

Irrigation survey, work of . 5

Irving, R. D., cited on Algonkian rocks

of the Lake Superior region _ 543, 544

cited on pre-Potsdam topography ... 555

Isostacy, example of . 377

Kansas, topographic work in.. 4, 6, 7, 24, 29, 30, 47

atlas sheets engraved . . . . 7

Keith, Arthur, work of . . . 78,79,81

Kentucky, topographic work in _ 4, 6, 24, 26

atlas sheets engraved . . . 8

pottery clay s in . . 505

ocher in . . . 506

configuration of western . . . 366

exposures in western . . . 466

Kerr, Mark B., works of _ _ _ 59

King, Clarence, cited on deposition of
the Paleozoic rocks of Nevada

and Colorado . . 552-553

King, F. P., work of . . . . . 84,86

King, Harry, work of - 31

Knight, F. J. , work of . . . 43, 48, 51

Knowlton, F. H., work of _ 91, 120, 122, 123, 124

Kiibel, Edward, work of . 31-32

Kiibel, S. J., work of . 16

report of . 138-140

Lafayette formation, studies of _ 71,74,77

paper by W J McGee on . 347-521

area of . 360

unconformities bounding _ 473, 497, 507

configuration of . . . 475, 494

color changes in _ 476

dependence upon subterrane of . 479,490

670

INDEX.

Page.

Lafayette formation — Continued.

distribution of . - . -489, 497

materials of . 494, 497

arkosein . . 495

clays of . . . -405, 495

definition of . . . . . . 497

synonymy of . . . .497,502

composition of . . 4"7

age of . . 498

soils of . 503

resources of... . . . .

history of . 507

deposition of .

degradation of . 1 . - . .

Lagrange, exposures near - 460, 462, 463, 464

Lagrange formation, the . — 469

Lake Agassiz, work on - , . 88

Lake Superior division of geology, work

of . 55,84-87

Land surface, down-wearing of. . 301-302

Langdon, Daniel W., aid by . 74

Langdon, D. W., jr., cited on the Chatta¬
hoochee limestone . 410

cited on Eocene deposits . . 413, 414

cited on the division of the Lignitic. . 416

cited on Cretaceous deposits . 420

section constructed by . 426

cited on the Lafayette . . 476

Laramie formation, relation to the Lig¬
nitic . - . 417

Laurel Hill, La., exposures near . 431,434

Lawson, A. C., cited on Paleozoic topog¬
raphy . S’57

Lead, statistics . 14,130

Leaf River, Mississippi, Columbia de¬
posits on . . 391

exposures on . 439

Le Conte, Joseph, conference by . 501

Leadville mining district, geologic work

in . 57

Leadville, Colo., work at . 96-97

Leidy, Joseph, work of . 12

Leverett, Prank, work of . . 89

Lexington, Miss., exposures near - 449

Lexington, Tenn., deposits near . 466

Library, work of . 17-18

Library and documents, work of division

of . 142-144

Lignitic, influence on configuration — 366-367

description of - - - . 415-418

Lime, statistics . 14

Limestone for iron flux, statistics . 15

Lindgren, Waldemar, work of - ;..103, 104, 106

Little Rock, Ark., Lafayette deposits at. 470

Lively, Ala., exposures near . 478

Loam, brown, of Mississippi embay-

ment . 392, 394-395

Loess, distribution of . 392-394

Loftus Heights, exposures in. . . 436

Logan, William E., cited on Potsdam

group of the St. Lawrence V alley . 549

Loper, S. W., work of.. . 62, 106, 110-111

Loughridge, R. H., work of . . . 73,76

cited on the Eocene . 415

cited on Cretaceous deposits . 419

section constructed by . 426

Page.

Loughridge, R. H.— Continued.

cited on the Lafayette _ _ _ 469

photograph by . . . 484

cited on the synonymy of the Lafay¬
ette . 500

conference by . 501

cited on pottery clays . 505

Louisiana, topographic work in . 4, 24, 31

configuration of . . . 374

steam-worked farms of . 379

Lafayette deposits in . 431

Calcasieu prairies of . 471

Lower Mesozoic paleontology, Work of

division of . . . 111-112

Lumpkin Mountain, Mississippi, signifi¬
cance of . . 371-372, 460

Luther, Geo. E., work of . 84,86

Lyell, Sir Charles, cited on the coastal
plain . . 380

Macon, Ga., exposures about.. . 480

Maine, topographic work in . . 4, 5, 24, 25

atlas sheets engraved . 8

geologic work in . 66

Malmaison, Miss., exposures near _ 449

Malvern, Ark., Lafayette deposits near . 471

Manganese ore, statistics . . . 15, 131

Maps engraved . . . . . . 7-8, 32, 42

Maps drawn for engraving . . . 50-51

Maps, geologic, mode of preparation _ 79-80

Marls, statistics . . . 15, 132

Marquette iron district, geologic work in 55

Marsh soils . 317-320

Marsh, O. C., work of . 12

report of . . .118-119

Maryland Agricultural College, coopera¬
tion of.. . . . 72

Maryland, topographic work in _ 4,6,24,26-27

atlas sheets engraved . 8

geologic work in . 73-74

configuration of . 360-362

geologic exposures in . 488

Massachusetts, topographic work in _ 4

atlas sheets engraved . 8

geologic work in . . 53-54, 66-67, 68, 69

Mather, W. W., cited on the coastal plain 380

Mattaponi River, deposits on . 488

Matthew, G. F., cited on the Cambrian

rocks of Canada . . ..542, 547

Mayfield, Ky., exposures at . 467,468,469

McChesney, J. D., chief disbursing clerk,

work of . 18

report of . - - - 146-216

McClure, W., cited on the coastal plain.. 380

McCulloch, Richard, work of . 90,97

McGee, Miss., exposures near . 450

McGee, W J, work of . 54,58,65,82

report of . . 70-77

paper on Lafayette formation by ...347-521

quoted on the fall-line _ _ 357

cited on the Columbia formation _ 384

cited on fossils of the Chesapeake for¬
mation . 411

cited on the Potomac formation ....1 422

quoted on Cretaceous deposits . 423

INDEX.

671

Page.

McGee, W J— Continued.

cited on Lafayette deposits . 430

cited on unconformities . 450

cited on the synonymy of the Lafay¬
ette . 499

Melville, W. H., work of . 128

Memphis, Tenn., section at.. . 465,466

Meridian, Miss., exposures near . ..391, 473

Meridian formation, founding of the . 413

Merriam, W. N., work of . . 84, 85, 86

acknowledgments to. . . . . 103

Metallic products of the United States,

table of statistics . . . . 14-16

Metamorphic and crystalline rocks of

New England, work on . 54

Mexico, formations extending into . 472

Mica, statistics . ..15, 133

Michel Levy, cited on crystallization. ..658. 663

Michigan, topographic work in . 4, 6, 24, 29

geologic work in . 68, 85

Midway formation, the . 417

Milan, Tenn., exposures about . . 466

Millen, Ga., exposures near . 481

Millington, Tenn., exposures near . 465

Millstones, statistics . 15

Mine Creek, Ark., Lafayette deposits on. 471

Mineral paints, statistics . 15

Mineral products, statistics of. . 14-16

Mineral products of the United States,

table of statistics _ _ 14-16

Mineral Springs, Miss., exposures near . 439

Mineral waters, statistics . . 15, 132

Mining statistics, work of division of ... 14-16
Mining statistics and technology, work

of division of . 129-134

Miscellaneous division, work of . 145

Mississippi, topographic work in . . 6

configuration of... . 366

floodplains of . 379

Lafayette deposits in southwestern . . 433

geologic exposures in central . 448, 450

exposures in northern . . 252, 457

exposures in eastern . . . 473

ocher in . . 506

pottery clays in . 506

Mississippi embayment, geologic work in 70-71
divisions of Columbia formation in. . 392

Mississippi River, bluffs of . 369

Missouri, topographic work in . 4, 30

atlas sheets engraved . 8

investigation of zinc deposits of _ 56

geologic work in . . . 62, 68

configuration of southeastern . 374

Mitchell, S. L., cited on the Coastal plain 380

Mobile Bay, Columbia deposits on . 391

deposits of Lafayette equivalents on 476

Mon Louis Island, Ala., deposits of _ 477

Montana, topographic work in . . 4, 7, 48

atlas sheets engraved . . 8

geologic work in.. . 56

work in coal fields of . 95

Montana division of geology, work of _ 91-92

Montgomery, Ala., exposures about _ 477

Monticello, Fla., exposures near . 482

Moore, Charles J., acknowledgments to . 97, 98
Mordenite, crystalline . 96

Page.

Morsell, W. F., report of . . 145

Murlin, A. E., work of . 26-27

Murray, Ky., exposures at . 468

Murray, Alexander, cited on relations of
Archean and Algonkiau series of

rocks of Atlantic coast . . 541

cited on Paleozoic rocks of Newfound¬
land . 547

Nanafalia formation _ _ ... 417

Nashville, Ark., exposures near... . 470

Natchez, Miss., exposures near . 395, 397, 399

Natchitoches, La., Lafayette deposits

near . 471

Nell, Louis, work of.. . . 27-28

Neocene rocks, work on . 11

Nevada, topographic work in . . . 4. 7, 45

atlas sheets engraved . . 8

Newell, F. H., work of . . . 63

report of . . . . 134-136

New England, work on crystalline and

metamorphic rocks of . 54

New Hampshire, topographic work in. . . 4

atlas sheets engraved . 8

New Jersey, topographic work in . 4

atlas sheets engraved . . 8

study of phosphates of . 9

geologic work in . . 53, 68, 69-70

configuration of southern . . 360-362

Columbia, formation in . . 386

New Jersey division of geology, work

Of . 52,53,54

New Jersey Geological Survey, coopera¬
tion of U. S. Geological Survey

with . 53

New Madrid earthquake, effects of ..370, 375, 401

New Mexico, topographic work in . -4,7,48

atlas sheets engraved . . . 8

Newton, Henry, cited on Potsdam rocks

of the Black Hills. . . 556-557

New York, topographic work in . 4. 5, 24

geologic work in . . ..54, 68, 69

Nicholson, Miss., exposures near . . . 438

Nickel, statistics . . . . 14, 131

North America during Cambrian time .523-568

North Carolina, topographic work in _ 4

atlas sheets engraved . 8

geologic work in _ _ 75-76

configuration of eastern . . . 363

exposures in . 485

North Dakota, work in . 7

topographic work in... . 49

Norwood, W. S., work of . 82

Novaculite, statistics . 15

Obion River, deposits on . 466

Ocean bottom soil . 245, 249

Ocher deposits . 476, 506

Ocmulgee River, exposures on . 480

Oconee River, exposures near . 481

Ogeechee River, exposures near . . 481

Ohio River, Lafayette deposits north of. 469
Oilstones and whetstones, statistics .... 132

Okatibbee River, Columbia deposits on . . 391

672

INDEX.

Page.

“Old field ” erosion . . 373, 433, 443, 461

Orange Sand (of Safford) . 392,393

Oregon, topographic work In . _ . 4

atlas sheets engraved . . 8

geologic work in. . 11 . 57

Orr, Wm., work of . . . . 68,69

Ouachita River, deposits on : . . . . 470

Oxford, exposures near . . .454, 456, 457

Ozokerite, statistics . 15,133

Pacific coast, work on . 72-73

Paints, mineral _ .1 . 133

Paleobotany, work in . 12

work of division of _ » _ 120-125

Paleontolpgic work, nature and progress 9-13

Paleontologic correlation, work in _ 380

Paleontology, work in _ _ 106-127

Paleozoic invertebrate paleontology,

work of. division of _ 106-111

Palmer. P. W. , Public Printer, acknowl¬
edgments to . 17

Palingenetic drainage defined . 494

Pamunkey formation . 418-419

Paris, Ky., deposits near . 466

Patapsco River, Columbia deposits on.. 385
Pascagoula formation, relations of the.. 409
Pascagoula River, Columbia deposits on. 391

Peale, A. O., work of . 56,58

report of . 91-92

acknowledgments to . 534

Pearl River, Mississippi, Columbia de¬
posits on. . 393,448

Pennsylvania, topographic work in . 4, 5, 24

altas sheets engraved . 8

Penokee mining district, geologic work

in . 55

Penrose, R. A. F., jr., cited on the Lig-

nitic . . 417

cited on the Fayette beds . 472

cited on the synonymy of the Lafay¬
ette . . 500

Peters, W. J., work of . . 29, 43, 49

Petersburg, Va., exposures near . 486

Petrographic laboratory, work of . 57

Petroleum, statistics . ...15,132

Phoenix, Ala., exposures near . 478

Phosphate deposits of Florida and New

Jersey, study of . . . 9

Phosphate deposits, studies of . 82,83,84

Phosphate rock, statistics _ _ 15, 132

Phosphates in the Lafayette . 483

Physiographic provinces of Eastern

United States . . 353-360

Piedmont plateau, physiography of . 354

Pilling, James C., acknowledgments to . 19

Pirsson, Louis V., work of . 93, 96

Plants, effect on soil of . . . 268,274

Plateau gravel correlated with the La¬
fayette . 470

Platinum, statistics . 14

Pleistocene formations, studies of . 55

Pontchartrain clays, definition of . 394

Porphyrite and porphyry defined . 582-584

Porter’s Creek group . 416

Port Gibson, Miss., exposures near.441,442,443

Page.

Port Hickey, La., exposures near . . .395, 396

Port Hudson deposits, extent of . 400

Potomac division of geology, work of .54, 70-77

Potomac formation . 421^24

Potomac River, Columbia deposits on. . . 385

Potter’s clay, statistics . 15

Prairie soils . . . 323,326

Prairies, southern . 375

Precious stones, statistics... . ...15, 132

Prescott, Ark., exposures near . 470

Pritchett, H. S., work of . . 49

Prosser, Chas. S., work of _ 121, 122, 124

Publications, progress of . 17

Publications during year. . .141-142

Public Printer, acknowledgments to.... 17

Pumpelly, Raphael, work of . .9, 53, 54, 58, 85, 107

report of . 67-70

Pyrites, statistics . . . 15, 133

Quicksilver, statistics . 14, 130

Rainfall, effect on soil of . 252-258

Rain water, action on soils of . ..293-298

Rappahannock River, deposits on . 485

Raymond, Miss., exposures near . 448

Red hills of South Carolina, significance of 485

Redmond, W. Preston, aid by . . 93

Red Bluff limestone _ _ .... 412

Red River, Columbia, deposits on ..404,406,470

‘ ‘ second bottoms ”of . . 471

Reelf oot Lake, exposures near _ _ 466

Ren6vier, E., cited on faunal changes ... 383

Renshawe, J. H., work of . 28

Reservoir sites, located and surveyed ... 44

platted . 51

Reynoso marl, the . 500

Rhode Island, topographic work in . 4

atlas sheets engraved . 8

geologic work in . . 66, 67

Richmond, Va., exposures near . 487

Rio Grande, Columbia deposits on..: _ 405

Ripley formation _ 419

Rizer, H. C.,work of . 19,52

Roanoke River, Columbia formation on. 386
Robinson, Norman, chemical tests by ... 483

Rocky Springs, Miss., exposures near... 444

modern erosion at _ _ .445, 446

Rogers brothers, cited on the Coastal

plain . 380

Rotten limestone... . 419

Russell, I. C., work of . 59-61, 65

Rutile, statistics . . 15

Sabine River, Columbia deposits on . 404

Sabine beds . 417

Safford, J. M., work of . 62

cited on Eocene deposits . . 416

cited on Cretaceous deposits . 419

cited on the Memphis section . 465

cited on the Lafayette . . 469

cited on Lafayette clays . 495

INDEX.

673

Page.

SafTord, J. M.— Continued.

cited on the synonymy of the Lafay¬

ette... . 498

conference by . 501

St. Elmo, Ala., exposures near . 475

St. Johns River, sands of . . . 483

St. Marys River, exposures on . 484

Salisbury, R. D., work of . 88,89

cited on the Columbia formation . 386

cited on the Lafayette . 470

cited on the synonymy of the Lafay¬
ette . 500

cited on Pleistocene subsidence . 515

cited on Columbia period.. . 517

Salt, statistics . . 15,133

Salt Mountain limestone . . 412

San Antonio, Tex., deposits at . 472

San Antonio River, Columbia deposits on 404

San Diego, Tex., deposits at . . . 472

Sand hills of South Carolina, significance

of. . 485

Sand plains of the Carolinas . 485

Santee River, Columbia deposits on . 388

exposures on . 484

Sardis, Miss., exposures near . 461

Savannas, characteristics of . . 368

Savannah River, Columbia deposits on . 388

Lafayette exposures on . .481, 484

Sayles, Ira, work of . 106, 107

Schneider, E. A., work of... . 13,127

Scudder, Samuel H., work of. . 12-13

report of . 125-127

Sea, encroachment of the . 376

Searcy, Ala., exposures near . 477

Second bottoms . . 387, 389, 391 , 405, 439, 516

of Alabama . 478

of Red River . 471

of Texas . 473

Sediments, mode of deposition of . .530-532

Sepulchre Mountain, Yellowstone Na¬
tional Park, geological descrip¬
tion of . 633-634

eruptive rocks of . ...633-664

lower breccia of . 034-635

upper breccia of . 635-640

dike rocks of . 640-647

mineral and chemical composition of

rocks of . 647-650

Sepulchre Mountain and Electric Peak,
Yellowstone National Park, com¬
parison of rocks of . 650-652

correlation of rocks of. . ..653-657

Seth, Joseph E., aid by . 72

Severn formation . 421

Shaler, N. S., work of . 53-54

report of . 66-67

paper on origin and nature of soils .213-345
cited on Cambrian and pre-Cambrian

rocks of New England . 542

Shields, J. H., work of . 81

Shore lines, Columbia . 394

Shreveport, La., Lafayette deposits near 471

Silurian and Cambrian life, researches in 10-11

Silver, statistics... . 14,130

Sinclair & Co., engraving contracts with 17,32

12 GEOL — 43

Page.

Slate ground as pigment, statistics . 15

Smith, Eugene A., work of . . 74-75

cited on Eocene deposits . .412,413

cited on division of the Lignitic . 416

cited on Cretaceous deposits . 419, 422

section constructed by . 426

photograph by . 474,479

cited on the Tombigbee chalk . 475

cited on synonymy of the Lafayette. . 499

conference by . 501

Smithsonian Institution, acknowledg¬
ments to secretary of . 19

Snow, effect on soil of . . . 251-252, 255

Soapstone, statistics . 15,133

Soils, paper by N. S. Shaler on origin and

nature of . 213-345

Soils, composition of . 223-226

cliff talus . ..232-236

glacial . .236-239

volcanic . 239-245

of newly elevated ocean bottoms . ..245-249

physiology of . 250-306

effect of snow on.. . . . 251-252

effect of rain on . 252-258

effect of forests on . .253-254

effect of atmospheric action on . 261-262

effect of frost on . .262-268

effect of animals and plants on . 268-287

modes of aggregation of . . 287-293

downward motion of . 297-299, 302-304

minerals in . 304-305, 306-310

arid . 306-310

swamp . 311-320

marsh.. . 317-320

ancient.. . 320-323

prairie . 323-326

wind-blown. . . . 326-329

influence of man on . 329-340

impoverished by agriculture . 330-336

effect on health of. . 340-344

Soil formation, processes of . . 230-232

South Carolina, topographic work in. 4, 6, 24, 27

atlas sheets engraved . 8

geologic work in . 75-76

configuration of . 364

exposures in . 484

South Dakota, topographic work in . 49

Spencer, J. W., aid by . . 74

section constructed by . 426

cited on synonymy of the Lafayette. 501

Stanley-Brown, J., work of . . 100, 101, 102

Stanton, T. W., work of . ..98, 113, 114, 115

Stearns, R. E. C., work of . 115, 118

Stokes, H. N., work of . . 128

Stone (building) , statistics . 14

Strickers Landing, Miss., exposure at... 437

Sulphur, statistics . 15, 133

Survey, topographic, table showing by

States the present condition of . . . 3-4

during 1890~’91 . 23

methods of . 50

Susquehanna River, Columbia deposits

on . 385

Suwanee River, exposures near . 483

Swamp soils . 311-317

674

INDEX.

Page.

Pago.

Talc (fibrous) , statistics . 15

Tallahassee, Fla., configuration about ..368,482

exposures at. . 482

Tallahoma River, Miss., Columbia de¬
posits on . 391

Tallahatchee River, Miss. , exposures near . 457

Tarr, R. S., work of . 66, 67, 70

Taylor, Miss., exposures near.. . 454

Temperatures of earth’s interior meas¬
ured in dry well at Wheeling, W.

Va.. . 13,63

Tennessee, topographic work in ...4,6,24,27-28

atlas sheets engraved . 8

geologic work in . 54, 62, 78

configuration of western . 366

exposures in western . 460

ocher in-' . 506

pottery clays in . 506

Tennessee Ridge, deposits at . 466

Tennessee River, exposures near . 466, 468

Tensas, Ala., gravel deposits near _ ... 477

Terminal moraine, relation of Columbia

formation to . . . 386

Texas, topographic work in . . . .4, 6. 24, 30, 47

atlas sheets engraved . . 8

configuration of southeastern. . 376

deposits of . 472

gravels of . 506

Thomasville, Ga., exposures near . 482

Thompson, A. H., work of . 5

report of . 42-52

Thompson, Gilbert, work of . . . 26

Tillatoba River, exposures near . 453

Timber beds . 417

Todd, James E., work of. . 89

Tombigbee sand. . 419

Tombigbee chalk . .419, 475

Topographic branches, work of _ 23.52

Topographic surveys . 1-8

table showing by States present con¬
dition of . 3^4

methods of . 50

Traders Hill, Ga., exposures near . . 484

Trees, effect on soil of . 269-272

effect on soil of overturning of.. . 273-274

Trinity River, Tex. , Columbia deposits on 406

Tule lands . ...320-321

Tuomey, M., cited on the coastal plain... 380

cited on Eocene deposits . . . 412

cited on the red hills of the South _ 485

Turner, H. W., work of . 104, 106

Tuscahoma formation . 417

Tuscaloosa, Ala., exposures near . 474

Tuscaloosa formation . 421-424

Tuscaloosa River, Columbia deposits sn. 391
Tweedy, Frank, work of . 43, 48

Underground temperature, studies in... 63

Upham, Warren, work of . 88

Upper Mesozoic paleontology, work of

division of . 112-115

Urquhart, C. F., work of . ....30,43,47

Utah, topographic work in . 4

atlas sheets engraved . 8

Vaiden, Miss., exposures at . 450

Van Hise, C. R., work of.. _ 55, 56, 58, 65, 68, 107

report of.. . . 84-87

cited on Algonkian age of the rocks

of Black Hills, South Dakota . 543

Van Ingen, Gilbert, work of . .62, 107

Vermont, topographic work in . 4, 6

atlas sheets engraved . 8

geologic work in . 54, 66, 68, 69

Vertebrate paleontology, work of divi¬
sion of . .12,116,119

Vicksburg- Jackson limestone . _ 412-413

Vicksburg, Miss., exposures near . 395

Villa Ridge, Ill., exposures at . . 369

Virginia, topographic work in _ 4,6,24,27,28

atlas sheets engraved . . . 8

geologic work in . .54, 73, 74

configuration of eastern . 363

Lafayette exposures in . 486

Volcanic soils . . 239-245

Vosburg, Miss., exposure near . 473

Waelder, Tex., gravels at . 472

Walcott, Chas. D., work of . 10,64,85

report of . 106-111

paper on the North American conti¬
nent during Cambrian time by.. 523-568
on Cambrian and pre-Cambrian to¬
pography . 562-568

Wallace, H. S., work of . 30, 43, 47

Ward, L. F., work of . 12,65

report of. . . . 120-125

cited on Cretaceous deposits . 423

cited on the synonymy of the Lafay¬
ette . , 490

conference by . . . 501

Washington, D. C., Columbia formation

at. . 385

Chesapeake formation near . .,. . . 411

Lafayette exposures about . 488

Washington, Ark., exposures near . 470

Wateree River, exposures on . 484

Waterford, Miss., exposures near . 458

Water Valley, Miss., exposures about. ..454, 455
Waynesboro, Miss., unconformity near .. 409

Weed, W. H., work of . 58, 92, 93, 94, 95

West, Miss., Lafayette exposures near... 450
Western division of topography, work of. 42-52
West Virginia, topographic work in. .4, 6, 24, 27

geologic work in . 54

Wheeling, W. Va., earth temperatures

measured in dry well at . 13, 14

Whetstones and oilstones, statistics . 132

White, C. A., work of . 11, 64

report of . 112-115

White, David, work of . 72, 120, 122, 123

White, I. C., aid by . 63

White limestone, the . 412

Whitney, Milton, aid by . 72

Whittle, C. L., work of . 68-69

Wickliffe, Ky., Lafayette exposures at .. 467

Willcox, Joseph, aid by . 117

Williams, Geo. H., work of . .'.58, 72, 73, 85, 87, 103

INDEX.

675

Page.

Williams, H. S., work of ....11, 62, 64, 106, 107, 108

cited on faunal variations . 383

Williams, J. B., work of . . . . 134

Williams, J. Francis, work of . 103

Willis, Bailey, work of . 54, 68, 85

report of . 78-81

acknowledgments to . 534

Wilson, A. E., work of . 30,43,47

Wilson, H. M., work of . 25

Wilson, N. C., exposures at . 486

Wind-blown soils . 326-329

Winona, Miss., exposures near . 451

Wisconsin, topographic work in . 4,6,24,29

atlas sheet engraved . 8

Wolft, J, E„ work Of . 53, 67, 68, 70, 103

Wolf River, Miss., exposures near . 458

Woodworth, J. B., work of . 1 66, 67

Worthen, A. H., cited on the Lafayette.. 470

Wyoming, topographic work in . 4

atlas sheet engraved . 8

Yalabusha River, Miss., exposures on... 453

Yazoo, Lafayette exposures near . 449

Yazoo River, Columbia deposits on . 393

Yeates, C. M., work of . 26,28

Yellowstone National Park, topographic

work in . 4

geologic work in . 56

Yellowstone National Park division,

work of . . . 92, 96

Yocona River, Miss., exposures near _ 453

Zinc, statistics . . . 14, 130

report of division of . 90

Zinc deposits of southwestern Missouri,

investigation of . . . 56

Zinc white, statistics . 15

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