Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1886-07-08

the size OF mans INST arc exploded.
with loud noise, ffOm the bosom Of
the earth. and scatter about glittering
and beautiful fragments that look like
precious gems, but are of no value"
Tie Indians of the Amazon also tell
of startling explosions beic., occasion
ally heard in the Paraguaxo, which
they believe to be made BY the mount
aims in their efforts to cast forth the
precious stones hidden in their bowels.
This notion is much the same as that
entertained by the Rocky mountain
Indians seen by Lewis and Clarke. In
the Black hills the Indians hang Offer
ings on the trees, or place them on
rocks, in places where the mysterious
thunderings are heard, to propitiate. as
they say, the '.lords of the mountains"
1t appears probable that the real cause
of these singular explosions in mount
ain regions is the bursting Of those
rounded, hollow concretions or indu-
rated nodules called goodies. What was
observed by Father Vasconcelles in
Brazil is good evidence OF this. The
Indians of the Sierra Piratiniga, had,
doubtless, satisfied themselves in re-
gard to the matter ages before. AS
the Indians of the Rocky mountains
believe the sounds to be produced by
the mountains when in labor to bring
forth the precious metals, it is not un-
likely that they may have occasionally
seen the glittering crystals strewn
about by the bursting of geode. 1t is
probable that the air within the geode
is so expanded by heat as to cause an
explosion; and where the geode con-
tains both air and the water of crystal
ization, the growth of the shooting
crystal may so compress the confined
air as to induce or at least contribute
toward the sudden bursting.
About Aurora. and in various places
in the mountains of the southeastern
part of Nevada, goodies are abundant.
Some of those found about Aurora con-
tain beautiful crystals of various colors.
In Nye County, in places in the range
of mountains which lies across the
south end of Smoky valley, the ground
is covered with goodies of all sizes,
many of which are lined with crystals
of various hues. On some of the mount
aims the ground is filled with nodular
masses, and they are dug out by speci-
men hunters like so many potatoes; in
deed, in some countries they are called
''potato stones" Nodules of iron are
often found in sandstone that are foot
or more in diameter. These are some
times hollow, while others are found to
be filled with an GENEROUS earth. The
shells are of iron ore. In that part OF
the Black hills where Hunt and M'Kin-
zie heard tie mysterious explosions.
there are tremendous cliffs composed
chiefly of sandstone, and this stone is
probably of a ferruginous nature, liable
to be prolific of goodies.
Those who do not believe that geodes
are capable of producing sthe strange
discharges of mountain artillery
have only to place one in the fire of
blacksmith's forge and blow the bel
lows for short time. The man who
shall make this experiment will be
convinced goodies viii explode, suppos-
ing him to survive it Whether it is
the heat of the sun or the pressure of
internal growth that causes these nat
ural bombshells to explode. it is hard
10 say. In some instances it is, per-
caps, owing to the one, and in others
to the other cause. Both in the Rocky
and in the Black hills at the
time the sounds were heard, it was in
August, when hot weather doubtless
prevailed. In South America and Bra
zil the days are, of course, very hot,
except during the rainy season. But
the explorers in the Black hills assert
that they heard the booming of the
mysterious guns of the mountains by
night as well as by day, therefore we
must conclude that these curious for
nations frequently explode themselves
through internal straining, as did the
frog that was trying to swell himself
to the size of the Ox.-San Francisco