The Canton mail. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 18??-1882, 1875-05-01

It is not always that geological inves-
LEGATIONS have as their object phenom-
ena which are of general interest, and
with which all are more or less familiar.
This II certainly the case, however,
with the study of the "giant kettles
in the neighborhood of Christiana, Nor
way, which has been lately carried on
by Professor Kjerulf and some of his
students. There is hardly any running
stream in our country OF any consider
able size which does not give proof of
the power of water and stones in motion
in what are popularly called "pot-
holes" An eddy in the stream where
the current is strong sets few pebbles
preston, into which larger stones fall,
and the grinding is continued until
cavity has been produced perhaps sew
round. These are often to be observed
not only in stream beds, but also in
rocks on the sea-shore, where the rush
of the tide must supply the motive
force.
The famous "giant kettles" of Nor
way are simple "pot-holes on a larger
scale, and produced in former times
under somewhat different conditions
than we have at present. The super
stition of the people represents them
as having been made by giants. In
some places, where the form is obloDg
and irregular, fancy has seen in them
the foot prints of these monsters, while in
one place, where the road goes directly
through q very large kettle, tho saying
is that there st. Olaf turned his horse
around. On the west coast of Norway
another name is used, and they are
spoken of as giants chairs.
The description of one Of these ket-
ties examined by Professor Kjeruf will
give some idea as to their size and gen.
eral character. At the surface it had q
diameter of about eight feet, being
slightly elliptical in form. It widened
considerably in the descent, and then
contracted again at the bottom. 1t is
interesting to note that the walls were
distinctly worked out in q spiral, which
could be traced from top to bottom. In
the case OF some other kettles examined
the spiral was 30 perfect thst the cavity
could be compared to the impression of
. gigantic snail.
The total depth of the kettle in ques.
ton from the highest point of the mar
gin was forty-four feet, the axis inclin-
ing somewhat toward the west. It was
filed, as is always the case, with gravel
and broken rock, though toward the
bottom numerous, so-called grinding.
stones were found, some of them 300
pounds in weight, and all smooth and
ellipticai in shape. It was through
their revolution that the excavation had
been made. 1t required thr men
working for fifty days to clear this giant
kettle of its contents, and the whole
amount taken out was estimated at 1850
cubic feet, some of the stones being SO
large that they had to be mined before
they could be hoisted out.
The kettles in general present much
the same features as the one which has
been described, though there is q great
variation in ratio of width to depth,
many of them being shallow, larger al
the top than at the bottom, and very
properly are called kettles, while others,
as the one alluded to. are deep, and
could better be called wells. Il is to
be observed that they are found by nc
mears necessarily in present river chan
nels. They are most common in the
neighborhood of the great fords
though they have been observed at
height OF 200 feet above the sea. II
regard to their origin, the best authori
ties refer it to the time when the lant
was covered by enormous glaciers, eucl
! a. exist at the present time in the upps