New-York tribune., 1895-01-20


tains, and northwardy to Central Michigan
From the high grounds which had hitherto been
islands there spread over the wide level expanse
! ~ lowlands measureless growth Of ferns
and rushes which advanced steadily in close
| order the modern MOSES. TO the conquest OF
| every marsh AS they fell. season after season
| the plants were not subjected to complete de-
cav but formed at the roots of their successors
layer Of peat The morasses became bogs. But
! the land was unsteady. When It was above the
sea the formation Of peat and muck continued
! without cessation When the sea resumed It's
ancient sway these bogs were overlaid with
! heavy deposits OF clay. sand and gravel. IN
! this manner thousands Of feet in thickness OF
strata were accumulated. which contained scores
Of coal beds many Of which were OF such depth
that even after they had been compressed ana
shrunken from the changes which took place IN
them in their buried state. remain OF suliicent
thickness to he worked by the miner Ihls
alternate action of and land was indis-
pensable to the chemistry which formed out OF
the watery and loosely compactcd peat the solo
masses Of the coal measures adapted to the use
of civilized man. Even when pressure ana
chemical action proceed SO far that they con-
vert the coal into practically incomDusuoe Sup-
stance. It becomes graphite useful in the arts
Fortunately Nature has rarely overdone her
| task Graphite is comparatively rare. Nhere
| the pressure and chemical change were less V!o-
| lent anthracite was formed, under less strain
hitumnous coal resulted, shading often In depos-
| its less and less useful. But the outcome was
| that no place in the habitable portion oil Amer
| lea north OF Mexico is more than 900 miles from
| a natural store Of subterranean fuel There nave
| been times when 500 miles was 4 distance IN
6niteIy beyond the endurance or man or 'he
| beasts he employed as his bnrden-bearers' pu'
| thanks in part to the coal itself that time is
mast or the relations OF the Carboniferous
Period to modern life 1t is needless 10 SPEAK
E,oousnco more than enough has been expended
upon it, But one curious thing needs to nc 90
served The change in civilized life that mas ioi-
lowed the use OF coal and Its derivatVe pToducs'
petroleum and natural gas. is but symool o.
tie revolution which the period heralded IN Inc
life OF the globe.
An tho vital conditions of North America were
changed. The animal remains In the rocks were
slowly converted into oils and gas. which, owing
to position. could Only In part escape lhe
storage Of these and OF ores. particularly iron'
which wont on during the whole Of the period
seemed like an anticipation Of the needs OF COM
ing race Then came the final submergence oi
the Mississippi plain not certainly the whole oi
il but much OF it, and the laying down 81 The
triassic strata apparently m slowly eNdpord'-
ing sea under a comparatively dry climate. Inc
final energence was. perhaps. FASTENED hy me
upheaval of the Ailegnany Mountains. lhenor-
forward the process Of hliing IN me 'ohlheh'a'
area went on slowly but without interrup'oh
Slowly the sea receGed from the eastern si"peS
of the Rocky Mountains Until the whole DOMAIN
was won from the Arctic circle to The Ve.Ee ~
the Cuff OF Mexico. \ lake system. ~ "h''"
the present magnificent fresh wafer sea' are Oh!
a lneagre reminder. stretched from ItXas 10 '''
northern boundary of the continent. Inc ~
hsaval of the land had been irregular. bu; aa
the surface was reduced 10 uniformity pE SUD-
s,dencc or attrtion the lakes disappeared. Then
the ice sheet crept down from the North wear
ing away mountains. cutting ravines. and leav-
ing a vast accumulation Of detftus as IL me'eo-
Meanwhile trees such as are still known. began
tn grow and animal forms closely related I"
those OF later times. numerous. Among
these IN particular were those creatures which
IN anparent chronological succession marx the
e,ens in the evolution Of the horse. In the Cor
dilIeran region there was vast volcanic move
ment In the Tertiary Period. The remoteness oi
tho period when these cruptions took place can
be roughly computed from the depths to Whlch
erosion has since gone. and this lends interest,"
To the fact that human remains have been i"u'u
beneath the lava beds. 1T Will be evident eve"
to those Of no geological training adds PROBES
sor Shaler. that these conditions indicate tha'
man must have been In this part OF the worid
many thousands Of years ago. We must con-
ceiye a folk dwelling beside the ancient river Tor
Sufficient time TO permit the remains OF theH
simple arts to accumulate IN the stream untiI
they were toleraby plenty in the SANDS ana
gravels Of its bed. Then came the outbreak OF
the volcanoes which filled the valleys u Il great
depth with the lava flows: then long interval
In which this thick and heated material became
somewhat cooled. so that the rivers could course
over II: last Of ALL the thousands OF years whlch
must have been required to cut down the deep
channels Of the rivers and TO bear away the eH-
cava.ed rocky matter to the lower country. or to
the sea-.
Howeyer long the interval may be since the
first anpearance Of man in America the Inference
must be that since he came the continent has
remained substantially unchanged. The horse
disappeared before learned the need OF
draught animal. and In the whole expanse o'
what was 10 be the United states there was oniy
one four-footed creature 10 be domestcated. inc
wolfsh dog which is still the companion o' the
Indian. The lack Of animals suited Tor domcs,l-
cation the want not Of sufficient food but OF
q sufficient variety OF food the wide spaces be-
tween rivers which were TO early man the only
highways Of travel. the treelcss plains OF the
West and the impervious forests Of the East.
were sufficient TO keep the native American from
first to last In the Stone Age where he began. He
never learned how 70 smelt metals, and the only
metal he ever learned to use was Lake Superior
copper which ne found In pure state, ready
TO work cold The somewhat finer achievements
OF the ancient Mexicans and Peruvians are men
toned by Major J. ". Rowell IN his contribu.
ton to these volumes. but they do not affect the
Gaze of the North American savage. The lack Of
domestic animals left in North America
without the inducemcnt to roam. As he spread
over the continent he settled in regions that
rlea sed him and when The EmrOpeans found