The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1893-10-20
THE OLDER COAST RANGES.
With More Recent Geological
Formations in Benton
County.
BY JOHN RAY.
CONTINUED from Last Week.
KINGS VALLEY.

form for description of the lay of this
range of hills as we can have. Placing
the left lower point about one mile N. w.
from Wrens station, running north to the
Luckiamute river, the west side of the
left line forms the eastern boundary OF
Kings Valley. The line to the right of
the letter would begin at the south point
of Cardwell hill, running then in north
easterly direction to the county line.
The east face of this line is the western
boundary of the Willamette Valley. The
distance between these two lines is about
eight miles, and this space is filled with
spurs or zigzag lines forming sharply de-
fined hills and long uneven valleys both
in the low land and also in the hills.
At central point in the Kings Valley
line (Ray Ranch) the formation is best
seen. Beginning at the road and look
ing east up the hill gully has been worn
by the winters water. This extends
about 900 yards. Beside this gully on
the north side for some distance is ver-
liable breast of about IS feet high, then a
rounding of the face back to the top of
the hill, thus not only in the steps in the
gully which occur..every few feet while
ascending the hill, but the vertical breast
gives one plain view as to the kind of
material, its dip, etc. (This breast is
caused by denudation in front.)
There is quite difference in the s1op-
ing lines of the hills in the Willamette
and Kings Valley. The former round
ing top, sweeping down hill somewhat
quickly, finishing out far in the low land
with a grand inward curve, where it is
lost beneath more recent deposits. The
latter presents number of tables almost
level, one above the other every two or
three hundred feet These tables are
from few rods to one-third of mile in
width, running north, and their length
seems to be in proportion to their width;
if wide, long-if narrow, short. Other
outlines together with igneous action and
metamorphism is common around the
entire range. It is then at the central
point above mentioned where more re-
cent metamorphism is best seen, and
character of rocks almost entirely differ
ent to those described at the Vineyard
place.
The Rocks.
Beginning near the road they are of a
sandy magnetism character, slate or flags,
color, buff with greens and light puppies
creeping in. The dip to the west is gen.
tie; but higher up the hill and in lower
strata the dip is about so. Igneous in
trusions, several feet wide, occur here,
and it may be that this extra rise is
caused by such intrusion. In the breast
above at the base is a dark drab stone
about two feet thick, breaking with
cherry fracture, hard, but with exposure
separates readily in curves Or shapes in
conceivable. Above, six or seven feet of
sha1es from one-eighth to four-eighths of
an inch thick, interspersed with flags
about three inches thick. The shales are
a blackish brown or brownish green,
arenaceous or si1icious. The thicker ones
argillaceous will split readily in the mid
die and show deep sculptured rounded
forms or figures. The flags have thick
cover or face on each side of fine clay,
with an uneven band in or about thel
middle of bright light grey sand, very
hard. The above material alternatesI
with the cherry rock which above as
sumes boulder forms, until the bouldersl
take ON more slaty character. On topl
is scattered about large boulders of Con-
glomerate or Breccia, the latter made upl
of large fragments of dolomite or ebert
with greenish paste, CLASSY crystals and
pieces of small fossil snail mixed in.
One mile west of this and near the edge
of this formation is low hill about one
fourth of mile in length and about IooI
yards wide, rising with steep or abrupt
sides about rs feet. The top ofthis body
of land is rounding. especially towards
the sides and ends. A little below the
top and away from. the edge Dolomitic
rock is found in pieces scattered around,
are about inches in thickness, present
rhomboidal faces, in color light yellow
ish grey; shading darker here and there.
About half way down one of the sides an
opening was made, from which several
large roundish blocks of the material were
taken. Back, and in the opening made,
the same material lay in fragments in the
utmost confusion. The rock also is
b1ackened and hardened by heat. This
is large body; it is separated on one
side only by narrow gully at the bot
tom, but at the top is quite wide. The
regular formation there is thin shales, as
it is further east. It is supposed this is a
slide from the high lands to the east. As
there are many slides on the west slopes
of the Kings Valley range there is Moth
ing in the way to have prevented it, as
seen to-day.
In the waterways thin slabs of lime
stone, poor white marble and fue speci-