The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1890-09-18
AN AGATE BRIDGE.
Some of the wonderful Things In Chalce-
dOny Park, Arizona.

Some of the Wonderful Things In Chalce-
dOny Park, Arizona.
Among the great American wonders
is the silicifed forest known as Chalce-
dony Park, situated eight miles south
Of Corrizio, station on the Atlantic &
Pacific railroad, in Apache County,
Arizona. The country formation is sand
stone on volcanic ash, and the trees are
exposed in gulches and basins where the
water has worn the sandstone away, or
are buried beneath the sandstone, their |
ends protruding from between the for
nations. The locality was noticed in
1858 by the Pacific railroad exploring |
survey. The jasper and agate generally
replaced the cell walls and ibers, and
the transparent quartz filed the cells
and interstices, especially whore the
structure was broken down by decay.
These cell centers and cavities pro-
duced conditions favorable not only for
the deposition of silica as quartz, but
also for the formation of the drusy crys-
tallina cavities of quartz aud amethyst
that so increase the beauty of the ma
terial.
There is every evidence to show that
the trees grew beside some inland sea.
After falling they became water-logged,
and during decomposition the cell struc-
ture of the wood was entirely replaced
by the silica from the sandstone in the
walls surrounding this great inland sea.
Major John w. Powell, who has visited
all these regions, says: ''The wood con-
sisted of logs water-rolled before burial,
and are now gradually weathering out
of their matrix. The inclosing rock is
sandstone and cretaceous shale of the
series known as Jura-trias, and lying
Immediately above the Chinarump.
Agatized wood containing much semi
opal has been formed in California (and
possibly in Arizona) under volcanic de-
posits, but the wood in question is not
associated with volcanic material; its
matrix is sedimentary."
The red and yellow coloring matter is
derived from the oxide of iron in the
sandstone, which is red, and the black
may be due to partial carbonization or
to oxide of manganese. The bark in
nearly every case has been decayed be-
fore silicifcation, and even part of the
other layers of the tree is often gone,
but the difference between the oxidation
on the surface and inside is that the sur
face to the depth of half an inch is Sc
altered and changed that it has the ap'
pearance of bark, and is generally sup
posed to be such.
A phenomenon perhaps unparalleled
A6o rom h1o faofl1ro f7f the
park is a natural bridge formed by 9
tree of agatized wood spanning canon
45 feet in width. In addition to the
span fully fifty feet Of the tree rest or
one side, making it visible for length
of over 100 feet. Both ends of the tree
7. are imbedded in the sandstone. 1t aver
ages 81 feet in diameter, 4 feet at th'
thickest part, and at the smallest
Where the bark does not adhere tn
= characteristic colors of jasper and agat
= are seen. Although the wood is beauti
. full to the naked eye microscope
= needed to reveal it's greatest charms
y not only does the glass enhance tn
. brilliancy of it's colors, but it render
-' visible the structure, which has bee
- perfectly observed, even to the forms @
minute cells, and is more beautiful no1
than before the transformation.
J DR.. P. q. Dudley examined micro
= scopicalIy some sections of this WOO
= and found that part of it, at least, be
J longs to the genus Araucaria, one spe
cies of which, Araucaria excelsa, tn
Norfolk Island pine of the South p
=. cifc Ocean, according to the same al
= thority, grows to height of 100 to 20
feet. Other portions were found to re
semble our red cedar, Juniperus Vii
giniana, when grown in the extrem
wv South. The cell structure of some {
the wood indicates growth in mild
N uniform climate, the annual rings bein
lg marked by only, one, two, three or mol
a slightly smaller hexagonal or rounde'
a not tabular cells, as is usually the cas-
ys The name of "Chinarump" has bee
1e suggested for this material by Mait
IN John M. Powell, this being the India
ut name for the substance. These tree
IN according to one of the Indian myth
sh were believed to be the bolts of the a
,ff rows used by their god. 1t has been 9:
or tensively used by them in making spej
is and arrow points.
IL