Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1879-11-06
AGRICULTURAL.
The Charleston PhOsDllates,

gives description of the bed Is Of
phosphates found near Charleston, s.
@. The discovery of these phosphates
is Of vast Importance to the agricul-
tural world, as. they. meet a demand
for rhosphates which raw bones were
found unable fully to supply. These
rocks extend over an immense area
hundreds of thousands of acres-and,
practically, the supply may be said to
be inexhaustible.
Geologically speaking, the region is
in every respect remarkable. 1t is a
vast basin, covered with mud and salt,
and formerly open to the inflow ofthe
tide. In tais region are found the
most wonderful remains of ancient
and extinct species Of animals. There
are whole acres richly studded with
fossils. Among these have been re-
cognized the bones of the mammoth,
maStodon, megathcrium, mylodon,
magalonyx, phocodon, several varie.
ties sauri also teeth and bones of the
shark and numerous other fishes in
great variety; with teeth and bones
OF the horse. dog, sheep, OK and hog,
differing but Ittie,if at all, from those
belonging to our present domestic an
imals. Pieces of pottery, too, haye
been found, to yether with stone hatch.
cts, all in this same bed, almost iden-
tical in their character with similar
remains found some years since near
Abbeville, in France. There have al
SO been found one or two human
bones, though the evidence on this
point is still somewhat defective.
This strange collection, this minia-
ture sepulchre Of tie ages, where ami.
mails extinct sleep side by side with
others, the ancestors, perhaps, Of our
daily companions; where men, beasts,
reptiles and fishes would seem to have
found a COM mon grave-these fossils
occur in the postpliocene strata. They
have been described in the scientific
journals by Prof. F. S. Holmes, who
has devoted many years to their
study.
In a heap of rocks, representing,
perhaps, couple Of cords, we found
fragments of deer's horns, perfect
sharks teeth, land numerous other fos.
sils Of more or less interest In an.
swer to the question, What is the lis.
tory of this great sea- basin ? We have
little to say, as nothing is positively
known regarding it. All rests upon
conjecture, and of the hypothesis
which have been presented, some are
50 preposterous as to be unworthy of
mention. That vast numbers of ma.
rine and land animals have in past
ages been here entombed does not ad-
NIT Of a doubt. The evidence upon .
this point is conclusive. 1t may have
been for some reason very enticing
foraging ground for the two classes Of
animal life, and here they found COM
mon graves. 1t could not have been
by any sudden entombment, as it is
not probable that such immense mum.
bers could have been congregated at
any one time. The burials must have
extended over great epochs, and those
very far in the past.
How were these strange rock nod
ules formed? How came they here?
1t is indeed very tantalizing that we
have no positive light upon these in
teresting questions, but there is none,
and we will not take up space in this
paper in the presentation Of any
speculations upon the subject. 1t
having been shown that knowledge
of the existence of the rocks must ex-
tend back to the time of the first set
Elements upon the coast, it now re
mains to inquire, when was the dis
covery Of their chemical nature first
made? And here we may remark that
it is curious that these rocks, and the
extraordinary basin in which they are
found, had been repeatedly examined
by scientific men during at least half
century before analysis revealed
their nature, and yet no one suspec.
ted their true chemical constitution.
These persons seem to have been more
intent upon finding sharks teeth of
monstrous size, and other fossil speci-
mems, than upon making chemical in
vestigatiors of the rocks among which
N