The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-12-16

mixed up among the fossils at the base OF th
stratum OF Sand. The small pools OF water IL
the gullies or ravines of the mound, after stand
| ing for several days. present a dark leaden hut
and emit a sulphurous smell.
| Damon's Mound is OF very great value on &C
count OF its fine limestone. 1t Is my opinion
that at some. no very distant day, by shafting OF
boring it. mineral waters Of great value will be
| found. That the mound contains nl sulphur
| be no doubt.
In relation to the fossils of Texas I belev,
| that can safely assert that no known portion
of the civilized globe presents such a wide and
varied field of fossil remains, and especially
fossil osteolog. It Is here that the p,aleontolo
mist can gloat and feast over specimens of q
past creation. From San Antonio to the Sabine
from the mountains to, tide water the remains
therium, Deinotherium, Lofiodon Gastherion
Fossil Bos, Saurian, and their varied eongen
ers) that have never been able to classify, have
been. and are yet to be, found scattered IN the
beds OF the rivers by the denudation Of the
streams coming In contact with the fossilifer-
GUS stratum at ordinary high water.
Austin county, in the bed of the Brazos river, at
very low water. | found single tooth of the
grand mastodon which weighed sixty four
pounds The tGo1 was ire rec II f9 Pm all foreign
was small piece of the alveolar process n OF
larger than the size Of an ordinary hand of q
and II weight g2Hd h beo Ray sao
/ exRu nd from the the fossiliferous strata
one single tusk of the grand mastodon.
in length, following the outside curve Of the
tusk Its greatest diameter was nine inches.
That portion of the tusk which grew into the
ossa innominata veTrtebria, tibia eiivicle, etc:
were simply incredible. Pieces of the frontal
portion ~ OF the skull we're three and some Of
recolleet that the frontal portion Of the skull
had any. more than three sinuses. One was
perpendicular, running from the apex of the
q yIIl low tf thn Fha 9TH y1rarn OF
right angles from the perpendicular sinus. The
internal cellular tissues We're very large, dlvid-
ng oeTp 5 g the pes Of .h
with each other at the bottom or junction of the
neck bones with the skull. The denuding action
greater portion OF this mastery skeleton. /
have often found joints or balls as we'll as those
portions making the sockets tacetabu lel which
were eight, nine, ten, eleven, and in two in
stances twelve inches in diameter.
The fossiliferous stratum is twentv-one feet
below the present surfaee of the earth one mile
west of Richmond, in Fort Bend county: This
extinct animals already mentioned. At the
town Of San Felipe. in Austin county. the fossil
stratum lies at q greater depth but that is on
zontal position is the same. All the layers. or
strata, everything the fossiliferous are void Of
Vegetable or fossil remains. and those under
river are also free Of fossil or any organic re-
mains.
Four miles below San Felipe found the claws
OF the megatherium, they may have been the
Lot1odonl one OF which weighed four pounds.
and the largest weighed seven pounds. vii n the
sheath or covering in most perfect and beau
tlful state OF preservation by petrifaction. From
every indication it would seem that petrifaction
commenced its action upon the claws OF the ami
NAL alm ost in the article of death.
The lawbone, containing one tooth. with the
entire condoloid process, was in a perfect state
OF representation by petrifaction.
The, wedge,like protuberances Of, the tooth
were but little worn and evidently showed that
this was the second change of teeth tthe first
having been shedf which the animal had at the
time Of its death and that it had hardly reached
It's Isl full IL, growth The megarhI II evidently
not have been carnivorous.
The teeth of the fossil bos in appearance,
sentation of our living buffalo, but on a much
larger SCALE The sutures of the skull were in
dented. only much larger and more deeply knit
together.
am satisfied that the fossil hos inhabited the
same CLINE, attitudes and ATTITUDES, and were
congeners. and perhaps, gregarious, with the
fact. then the mastodon and fossil Dos are not
lost links in the al most endless chain of ami NAL
for the simple reason that the elephant
i've Of the mastodon, and the buffalo is but the
FOSSIL Dos on smaller scale.
l have, never found a. horse bone nor a
human au b soar in the fossil strata With
was the tibia or thigh bone, of what
was supposed to be giant man: Many anato-
m ts ,ea}mparattlYe anatomsts and fossil
disagreed as to the genus to which 1t belonged.
Some said that it was human, others said that
not o he b h3m3 f
class of animals that had an erect walk and
stature. Twenty years after found the thigh
ad been very tai saw Inc from OF ~ e
grave where it had been reposing for ten years
previous to exhumation. Upon examination
structure and position, all except in size, length
md color
These teeth were round aud solid. and were
evidently carnivorous. No, was seven inches
ong, two inches wide on the, crown or apex,
md weighed two pounds. No. was seven
n long by one and three-quarter inches
ind half pounds. No, 8 was, seven inches
ong by three inches and a half wide ON the
crown or apex. and weighed nearly five pounds.
inches wide on the apex or crown; To give a
ull and perfect description Of the most i'm,
'ortant fossil specimens which | obtained
earch. would require letter Of too |
treat length for your purposes, and would only |
interest the scientist.
ossil remains are found. mixed with shale, |
.roken sand rock, pebbles of flint and petrifac- |
ions. |
The boulders of the boulder stratum are COM
'osed of the finest red clay, free from any yege
able or mineral matter. When dry, the frac-
ure or, cleavage is at every conceivable angle.
have broken a great many, but only in few
Instances concentric circles could be discov-
red On the outside Of all of them is thin
overing, of dark reddish or ack oxide of
ron, with small, gravel or pebbles adherent.,
When the boulder stratum was formed under
cath the great volume of water which must
ave kept the boulders continually, agitated or
4 a rolling condition, a powerful current Of
yater much stronger than that Of the Gulf
tream must have acted upon them. The
oulders vary in size from that of an egg to 10
r Is inches in diameter: The next layer below
oulders having seams of phosphate Of lime
INNING all through it in every conceivable, di-
ectlon i, It contains no vegetable or animal re-
lains. The next layer or stratum, aud which
caches into the water Of the river, is Of blush
ray color and is clay. It cont aims no vegetable
r animal remains.
Fragments of the turtle shell. very thick, are
,und in the fossil stratum. In the sand layer,
'hich oyerlies the boulder stratum, have
,rms of the decomposed phosphate and
uperphosphate, of lime. On the outside
ley were coated in the same manner as the
builders in the boulder stratum. They were in
very conceivable shape approaching to that of
1und. and with the clay boulders had been long