The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-07-26


e While he meditates ON his weird en-
: vironments an age has passed THous
e ands of feet Of limestone has been de
D posted on the ocean bed, burying myri
i ads of tiny animal forms, worn and
K ripple markings which, today, form ths
: letters, words and pages of the history
D OF that nightly lapse of time known
, as the lower Silurian age.
The only perceptible change noted by
the watcher during that almost infinite
period was that the almost total dark
/ ness, caused by the impenetrable veil
of mist, has been partially dispelled by
t the cooling of the yet warm ocean
masses of vapor.
Without warning. unusual sights and
; sounds arouse the watcher from his
; long Teverie. The late passive ocean is
; here and. there being dashed into fury.
Great volumes of smoke and jets OF
steam issue from the troubled waters,
while huge rock fragments are hurled
high in the mist laden air. Immense
tidal waves beat upon and threaten to
engulf the small area of dry land
which rocks and trembles beneath the
feet of the solitary spectator. The
smothered rumblings of earthquakes:
the crunching, grinding sound of enor-
nous rock-maSSeS in continuous oScil-
lation; the sharp and deafening eXplo-
sions as.the heated rocks of the eaIrh's
crust came in contact with the water;
the Kissing of steam and roar of con-
tending elements, all speak to him and
tell of pent-up subterranean forces
/ finding egress along lines of least re-
sistanee. A1-er what seemed an age,
during which the pandemonium of
sounds continued, silence regained its
supremacy and the solitary watcher
noted that his range OF vision had been
extended by the elevate and enlarge
ment of his island, and that other is
lands had been formed. An examina-
ton of the new land disclosed the fact
! that numerous assures had been
formed. and that up through those
channels had come untold wealth of
copper, gold, silver and other metals
which, except for those seismic convul-
sions, would have remained forever
beyond the reach of man.
Another age, comparatively of much
less duration, passed while the watcher
noted the change. Quietly, almost i'm
perceptably, the bold dome of Mt.
Badly rose. to an altitude of several
thousand feet and the area of dry land
was correspondingly enlarged. A clear
atmosphere enabled him TO discern the
apex of the Frisco mountain and the
granite comb of the Bradshaw range in
Beaver county. In Willard county the
Cricket range appeared as a lowlying
ledge beyond which, few miles dis
tant, the House range was plaintly Wis
IDLE a bove the ocean, and Detroit noun
tain was but a small island. The east
ern part of Willard, all of Sewer, nearly
ali of Iron and the eastern and
southern portions of Piute counties,
had not yet risen above the ocean. |
Moses, ferns and tiny trees of simple |
structure had taken possession of |
favorable localities, while new and di-
verse forms of animal life had multi |
piled in the ocean upon whose floor |
thousands of feet more of limestone !
had been spread and the Upper Silu-
rian age had added another chapter to I
the earth's geological history.
ANOTHER AGE.
Another age drew its slow length
along the path of physical and vital
progress. The solitary watcher noted
that his island home had somewhat
enlarged, and that new forms of vege-
tation of more sturdy growth had ap
peared. Vast beds of sandstone had
been spread out in places on the ocean
bed, while it's waters fairly teemed with
numerous types of the finny tribe,
great numbers Of which, with numerous
beautiful shells and other forms of
marine and terrestrial life. form the
letters, words and paragraphs of the
chapter called the Devonian Age.
CRUST BUILDING.
Our watcher had now entered the most
important and interesting period of the
earth's physical history The process
position of lime, shale and sandstone on
the floor of the ocean and the area of
dry land was steadily augmented by
waited ridge TO the south some 80 miles,
our watcher observed that a large area
n Iron county had risen few feet
above the ocean, and that. stretching out
.oward the south and west, large
forest of ferns and kindred trees had ,
aiken possession of the low-lying land.
'ther shrubs of simple structure occu- r
oied every foot of available space, while :
| rank growth of moss-like plants formed
CARPET of perpetual verdure No gaudy
butterflies fitted before our watcher
Tor songs of birds greeted him, nature
lad not yet given birth to the winged I
eptiles dragged their ungainly bodies
long the margins of swamps and lake
cts, and the hoarse croak of giant L
mphybianS alone disturbed the silence !:
f an otherwise eternal solitude. Thou
ands of years passed during which the a
rees, shrubs and plants fourished and Y
-egetable mould. Perpetual summer r
nd a moist tropical climate stimulated ! !,
uccessive, growths of vegetables until - -
he mould was scores of feet in daDth II
Quietly the land began sinking and the
reat forest was submerged. fastening
ack to the more stable region of Mt.
'aldy our watcher waited while thou
ands of feet Of shaIe, lime, sandstone C
tc-, were spread out over the ocean h
cor and burying deep in its firm en- n
race the once beautiful forest with its g
eptillian life and myriad forms of fish .
nd shells. all forming the subject mat
ar of the vastly important carboniferous
ge. .
To our now deeply interested spectator. U
me seemed to pass more swiftly as he
oted the more rapid evolution of ma
ire. On the greatly enlarged area of
~ land, embryatic trees and plants +,
ave place to those of more complex G
ructure bearing nuts and fruits. Grasses y
lcceeded canes and kindred coarse
egetation as the covering of nature
lille vari-colored flowers relieved the
onotonous stretches of green which Y
arked the presence of luxuriant vege-
tion in the. midst of which winged =.
rms of aerial life fluttered in joyous A
distance and broke the long silence ii
18th exhuberant melody. Quadrupeds of p'
amnaiian type roamed in the forests bl
Id wide savannahs browsing the
hales and other marine monsters
'orted in the tepid water. To our
I'VE fulfilled her contract in the de- ID
Iery of a finished world. However it
as not yet ready for mans OCCUPANCY
ocean floors and the beds of land
her kinds of rock were being deposited. -
he already large area of drv land was W.
ing added to by a slow uplifting of the -
and islands. when the gentle =
ovement of the earth's notwithstanding
ust became more energetic. Ocean
ors We're more deeply depressed caus-
2 compensatory uolift of the noun
in system. Fissures were formed up
lchite. granite. porphyrv and other in
lsive rock substance which overlooked