The Indianapolis journal., 1898-03-14
ARIzoNA's PErRIFIED FOREST.
Effort Will BE Made to Embrace 1t in
n National Park.
IS, in Chicago Record.

w. E. Curtis in Chicago Record.
An attempt will be made to secure the
passage of a law by Congress setting aside
as a reservation for park purposes a tract
of land in Arizona, which embraces the
famous petrihed forest. This has been
recommended again and again by the geo.
logical survey, the Smithsonian Institution,
the American Association for the Advance
ment of Science and other scief tific organ
iZatlons, and the increase of population and
travel out in that country has caused so
much damage through the forest that
something ought to be done at once to pre-
serve one of the greatest marvels of nature.
Prof j. Walter Fewkes, of the Smithson-
ian Institution, who visited the place re-
Gently, says
The place is about fifteen miles from
Holbrook, Ariz There are really three for
ests close together, the extent of which Is.
acres. They are in what is known as the
bad lands Of Arizona. The trees lie in for
recent formations. When the layers of
clay wear out it seems as ii the roots OF
the trees are below. When the clay dis
appears from the top surface the trees APP
pear The butts of the trees are several
feet in height. l measured Ole which
looked higher than my head and which
are of all colors of chalcedony The forms
of the bark and other parts of the tree
are perfectly preserved The petrification.
has evidently been carried on by liquid
mixed with silex flowing on the trees and
finally taking the place of the wood as IT
all being in an incumbent position.
1.-The clay formed on the trees and the In
filtration of the slick took place. They tum-
bled down, and when the clay was taken
away some of them were exposed in the
banks. The clay, by the way, Is variety
of black adobe. / went out to the place to
visit a ruin which was there and from which
I expected to get some valuable specimens,
but it yielded little or nothing. Looking
down from an elevation in the forest pc
in ridges and the whole looks like the back
of some horrible monster. In one place
noticed a guch with log lying across the
top, making natural bridge. The bark on
the trees, the roots, the knots where the
branches begin and everything was per-
fectly shown. The colors are beautiful ana
the exterior appearance even differs. The
trees belong to an old flora.
My idea is that where the clay Is not
worked out there are probably number OF
other forests similar to this | have just de-
scribed The trees are close together. lying
in all sorts of positions. Some of the logs
are broken into sections which look like
thick cart wheels We took hold of one
of them Weighing probably ton ana
rolled it down hill. where we watched it
crash into a lot of other logs. We brought
several specimens out with us. The supply
there is almost inexhaustible. | understand
the trees are on the government land. but
they have been staked out to some extent.
claims there. Some of them wish to polish
the material up into different objects. The
forest however, should be preserved as gov
ernment property.
THE Indians are fond of preserving pieces
Of the fossil wood. AT Walpi, the village of
the Moqui tribe, / saw piece Of the wood
in a shrine devoted to the earth of god"