The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1875-09-08

klnQ OF stories tnall nave 10 De Loiu III
words. But they have way of telling
stories, and very interesting ones, too.
These stories must be. Interpreted.
though before they can be understood;
and their interpreter is geology.
Suppose, for instance, that a man;
who knew nothing at all about geolo-
gy should see the plain print Of rain
drop IN solid rock. Such a person
would probably think the single drop
of water haG forced its way into hard
stone. But geology makes us under
stand that the rock was a bank of soft
clay when the rain-drop fell on it,
making little dent, which remained
in it after it had turned to stone.
In this way rocks relate their own
histories; and they not only do that,
but they tell US many wonderful sto-
ries of other things-stories OF Hoods
and fires, volcanoes and earthquakes,
gigantic wild beasts, and men hardly
less savage, strange and terrible mon
sters, and even dragons, or, at least,
creatures that looked very much like
them.
These things that looked like drag
two Greek words meaning wing and
l.
like those of bats, Joined to a long
/ claw or finger on the outside of their
| torefeet, and with these wings they
insects. Their heads were something
like those of crocodiles. and their
! great, strong jaws and sharp teeth
must have had a very dangerous and
altogether unpleasant look. They
were Of different sizes, but some were
very large indeed, with wings more
| than twice as wide, from tip to tip, as
| those Of the biggest bird in the world.
These frighuul things lived very
| long time ago and their skeletons
have been found among the rocks
| where they have been for thousands
of years. The rocks have kept them
safe for US, so that we could tell what
sort of creatures used to live in the
world in very ancient times.
Skeletons Of many other strange
and terrible animals have also been,
found among the rocks. One of them
| was tremendous elephant, a great
deal bigger than any you ever saw IN
a. menagerie, with long tusks which
curlcd around like one OF those twist
ed horns we sometimes see in a music
| al instrument store. and which look
as if somebody had been trying to tie
/ them in a knot. Others were like
! various animals now in the world, but
very much larger. Some of the bones
| of birds that have been found are as.
big as the 'rocs" you have probably
| read about in the Arabian Nights.
1t would be very inconvenient. l think,
| to have one of those tall fowls around
| now, particularly if he should takesa
notion to pick up a little boy or two
in his big beak and stalk away with
| him. And the people that should go
out cunning after such game would
| have to take a small cannon along it
they expected to do them much harm
/ at one shot.
The men that lived in the days
| when some of these monstrous beasts
| and birds still remained on the earth
were very rough and savage fellows,
and were not "A bit afraid of them,
even if they were so much ''over their
size" Although they didn't have any
guns or pistols, or any other weapons
that we would think much of, yet they
not only defended themselves against
/ these great animals, but even hunted
! them, ate their flesh, and clothed
| themselves with their skins. The
rocks prove this, and although there
| is not room here to tell you how, yet
when you study geology you will un-
| derstand it and learn great many
other interesting things.
| But these fossils, as they are called,
which are found in the rocks, are not
really more interesting than the rocks
themselves For every rock, stone,
or pebble on the earth has been made
to undergo some wonderful changes.
| Every lump of coal was once part of a
| tree in an ancient forest. All lime
stone has been formed from shells by
the ocean which broke and ground
them up until they became dust, which
was afterwards hardened to stone.
| Many beautiful churches and DWELL
inus are partly built of sort of stone
which was once nothing but sand.
Other kinds of rocks were formerly
clay. Some owe their origin to living
things, such, for instance. as coral
which is made by little insect. And
a very large number were made to
take their present form by great fires
inside the earth, which melted older
rocks, sometimes changing them to
other kinds.
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