The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1889-05-02

tute, in whole or in part, many of the hills
between the city and Mount Bonnell.
Across the river, south of the city, there
are also vast beds of them. Tho most re-
markable of these fossil beds are seen
west of the city on the line of the Inter
national and Great Northern railroad a
mile above the railroad bridge. The
road penetrates the edge of this hill
by cut 400 feet long and 80 feet deep.
The fossil shells of many species, many in
an excellent state of preservation, are
seen piled together in such numbers as to
form the greater part of the solid o,F.
1t will be more interesting perhaps to
consider some of these fossils separately.
Of the sharks that once sought their liv-
ing where there is now nothing but dry
land and thin air, nothing remains but a
few of their teeth, several of which have
picked up in my rambles. Some shells
of the nautilus are also to be met with, but
they are scarce. Fortified sea urchins are
also seen, but although few of the urchins
themselves are found preserved entire,
the number of their beautifully petrifed
spines that are found is astonishing
These spines are very beautiful, being
long, tapering, corrugated into finely ser
rated ridges and composed of fine,white
crystalline material. Any one who has
visited the rock quarries northwest of
town, must have noticed the huge
nodules of flint imbedded in
the massive limestone. These
masses are nothing more or less than
petrified sponges. This is curious fact,
and one that seems to point to an anology
between one of the softest and one of the
hardest of substances. Some times the
structure of the sponge is plainly dis
cernible in the flint mass. have piece
of jasper which I procured near st. Ed
wards college, in which this popularity is
beautifully exhibited. No less inter
esting are some speciAens of fossil
coral. These petrlfcations, probably
thousands of years old, have resisted mar
velously the influence of time, and are ad-
mirably well preserved. They are of the
same species as the branch coral of the
present day, and present all its charac-
teristics. Three procured near Elmwoo d
dairy, and near the same place 1 pickle d
up asmallpetrifica tion looking suspicious y
like small banana, but whether of vege-
table or coral origin have been unable
to determine. Of the fossil osteride
(oysters) of North America upward of
fifteen species are found near Austin.
Among these are the beautiful and rare
ostrea carinita and the mammoth exc
gyra wakeri. In size the latter was equiv
alent to two dozen of the common oyster,
and a single specimen would have fur
nished a comfortable meal for hungry
person. The fossils of the genera am
cd hnf in
number and species, and in sizes ranging
from the dimensions of half dime up
to gigantic specimens of eighteen inches
to two feet in diameter. Among other in
teresting fossils are the trigonia, looking
not unlike duck, and of nearly the same
size, and ceptuls, which looks like nothing
SO much as number of small angle worms
rolled together in a wad, and then turned
into stone. This curious fossil is found
in all the formations, and is evidently of
parisitical nature. Bones of mastodons
and other animals have been found. Eos
sill wood is abundant, some specimens of
which exhibit a structure not found in any
of our present trees, and l have found
several specimens of lignitized woods,
which are very interesting.
Altogether, there are upwards of sixty
various species of fossils, which we have
encountered, some of which are new to
science. A collection of these, with what
silioified wood and bones can be scraPed
together, would lay the foundation of
frst-class museum of paleontology. A
rich field is afforded naturalists and pri-
vate collectors; many of the forms are
really very beautiful, and would look we'll
in cabinet. A small museum in every
family, which can easily be procured,
while it would afford much pleasure to
older people, would be Just the thing to
stimulate the minds of children to in
quire more thoroughly into the mysteries
of nature. o. W. WILCOX.