The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1885-11-27
Among the Rocks at ard about Vineyards

One of the leading and most ancient land
marks near Corvallis is the promontory
about four miles north of this city and
known as the Vineyard Ranch. Its trend,
looking from the south, is easterly and west
erly. 1t is high, and slopes somewhat gen.
tly to the south. At it's foot lays soil as
rich as may be found in the valley, from the
disintegration of rock peculiar to this Ioca-
tion, and perhaps all that could be desired
in the way of soil making. Walking up
and on the hanks of this hill and casting
the eye from point to point, there is nothing
more attractive apparently to be met with,
than may be seen on amy billy slope. Only
an hogsback or rock exposure here and
there Its somber shale r.. elling rather
than inviting inspection. Bat closer and
more critical look at what is around us re-
veals colors bright and attractive, and then
the query, what is it? ar what are they? fol-
lows at once to the inquisitive observer.
i The writer does not presume to unfold the
mysteries hidden here. for, after only one
day in field so rich in rocks of igenious
wrath it cannot be expected; it will however
suffice if what shall be written will draw
attention, so, that if any benefits are to be
derived from this field, the owner thereof
and this community may soon be the recipi-
ants.
| In going to and fro over this field the OBJ
server comes to the conclusion tn It
where he stands has once, more probably
several times, been the seat of boiling.
seeth1ng, sputterins rock, for on the one
hand lay masses of bri 5ht red periphery
| filed with the cad like veins of quartz, near
and at distance can be found black AMI IL
lac or lavender grey colored trachytes, and
this again is dovetai,ed with the more SOM
ber, heavy and lull basalt. The trachytes
break with rough uneven fracture, are dry
aud harsh to the hand, much ike a cinder.
lnclosed in this Eock are y.'lowish white
crystals much the shape of a peanut This
broken, reveals fine slender threads or tbers
of white or gray; sometimes these rest
upon bright green. red or orange colored
eottony bed occasionally two colors prevail
in the same crystal. While the rock has a
dry harsh feeling more critical observation
reveals the lss TO be as it were composed
of red and white fatty substance in wave
lines giving the lavender shade to the rock
as before mentioned l. Also as if for furth
er adornment, deep red prisims of iron dot
the surface here and there The rock may
be said to he vescicular and amygdaloidal.
Aside from what revelations those igne-
l. Il
shale laying beneath, tell of a time near
when this disturbance prevailed, bnt where
the vents or chimneys through which so
much and varied matter came, and what its
thickness upon the water made rocks or
what wealth may be embosomed, all this is
yet to he determined.
High upon the sides of the mountain in
several places are some good springs, these
have opened out shallow waterw ays down
to the creeks below. In these waterways
lay rocks generally basalt, sometimes little
ironstone, but, all of the rock above the
water line is covered with white salt efaor-
escence, suggesting mineral beneath from
which this etfiorescence is derived
Passing from this interesting field to the
public road below, and thence t, the west,
we do not go far before our attention is ar
rested by what looks like a richly colored
clay by the road side, but on a further ex-
animation, its weight, hardness and color
suggested it as substance into which de-
composed mineral had entered, and not a
clay. What was it? All, you who reside
thereabouts tell US, for when we passed, we
had neither the time facilities to look
further into the matter, and it may. be per-
haps, we shall never see it agaiu. On, a
mile or so further west we pass the sulphur
and salt springs on Soap creek. Passing upl
litce distance above the mill is a deposit
remarkable and worthy of mention. This
is a bank of ocherous earth. 1t stands i'm
mediately upon the edge of the creek and
forming the south bank 1t is about 10 feet
high and 20 feet broad as seen. 1t is divid- |
ed into beds of about two feet each and up
wards, not laying directly horizontal, but
lifting together wedge like. The upper lay
er or bed is of clear bright red, this rests
upon deeper bed of lively lemon yellow, |
then again red and again yellow. Below
this rests thin layer of a few inches of
grass green, beneath this is gravel. Through
this mass vertically, and in other directions,
are veins of white CLASSY mineral, some
what decomposed making white pasty ma
terial. Having lost the small specimen OBJ
tanned, an examination of them has been
impossible. But the colors here suggest the
decomposition OF other mineral than iron,
and at not a remote distance from where
this bed reposes.
j. r.