The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-05-20
THE PETRIFIED FOREST.
Efforts to Make ArizOna's Great
Wonderland a National Park.
From the New York Tribune.

From the New York Tribune.
Washington, April 14.-Public interest
has been once mere quickened in the pet
rified forest of Arizona, and there appears
to be every likelihood of its being with
drawn from entry, by congressional ac-
ton, for the purpose of creating it into
national park. Probably no place on the
American continent possesses more in
ieresting scenic features or instructive
geological fields than this wonderful for
esq Of Arizona territory. In fact, the pet
rified forest in Egypt, it is asserted, can
not compare with it.
The forest includes an area of ten miles
square, in the northwestern section of
Apache county and only few miles from
the town of Holbrook. Adamana, a small
settlement on the Santa Fe Railroad. is
the nearest railway station, from which
majority of sightseers go to the forest
Ia is named after an old man, Adam
Hanna, the only inhabitant noted in it's
| immediate vicinity, upon whom falls the
duty of guiding and sheltering in his hum
bic home those desiring to see the curios-
tiles of the forest. Were 1t not for the
small sums the old man, picks up in this
way, it would be impossible for him to
exist, for the land is wholly unsuitable
for grazing, nor is it capable of support
ing any vegetation whatever. The bed of
the forest is vast desert of sandstone
and worthless except as a government re-
servation.
Prof Lester F. Ward, paleontologist of
the Smithsonian Institution, who has re-
Gently returned from an examination of
the forest, says that after leaving the
station one gradually ascends slope to
hight of 5000 or 5000 feet, crossing over
canyons, gulches and ravlnes from TWEEN
~ to fifty feet deep. The region leading
II n nal min al oil o &c
ceedingly rugged, and, indeed, when fin
ally reaching the topmost point, a sort of
table land, the ground is rough and cut
up with gulches and basins, which
makes 1t difficult to drive over in Ad-
ans wagon. At one of the highest points,
as far as the eye can reach, quantities
of huge silicifed logs and fragments are
seen scattered about in the ravines and
over the fields, which, intermingled with
the red, brown, white and purple layers
of sandstone on the edges of the cliffs,
present an odd, picturesque view. This
region may be rightly classed among the
natural wonders of abe American conti-
nent, and its petrifed wood is of more
perfect mineral formation that that found
in Wyoming and the Yellowstone and
Yosemite Parks. 1t has attained a de-
gree of hardness almost equal 90 that of
the diamond, making an excellent quality
of emery, and it very similar in compost
ton TO jasper or onyx.
For long time after the forest was dis
covered. in 1858. carloads of the silicifed
wood were shipped 70 the East for the Iur-
pose of manufacturing emery, but this in
dustry was discontinued owing to the in
PRODUCTION of an artificial material and it
is now used principally for ornaments.
such as clocks. tables, lamps. etc, as is
onyx. If lastly designed and highly pol
ished, so to bring out TO advantage its
varied colors, the silicihed wood can be
made into attractive ornaments, which sell
at comparatively large prices, considering
the quantities which have lain the for
so many years. Some mineralogists reg ard
il as among the precious stones of the
American continent. and a collection of its
choicest specimens has been obtained by
jewelers. firm at st. Paul, who will manu-
facture the agatized wood into unique de-
signs and exhibit them at the Paris Ex-
position. A similar exhibition was prepat-
ed for the Worlds Fair at Chicago.
This region is also marked by the ruins
of a number of ancient Indian villages, the
walls of some of which can now be recog-
nized. and arrow heads and ether Indian
relics are frequently found after hard
rains While there are no sigrs of any
distinct style of architecture beirg employ
ed by the ancient Americans, The dwell
ings had one significance. Probably never
have houses been constructed of such
beautiful and precious material as these
The houses appear TO nave been rectangu-
lar in shape and very low. with enc log
crossed over the other. as are log cabin
camps Of to-day. These villages have
perhaps lain in ruins since many years be-
fore. Columbus discovered America, and
are of historical interest.
Another feature which serves TO give
the silicified forest a special prominence
is the well-known natural bridge, one OF
the most celebrated objects in the West
consisting of a great petrffied trunk span
ming a canyon forty or fifty feet wide
and forming foot bridge upon which
men may easily cross. Surrounding this
remarkable potrihed bridge grow a cot
tonwood tree and a few bushes, consu-
tuting the entire vegetation In that re-