The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1902-06-14

teresting Million Year History In
Few words--A Wonderful Proc.
ess OF Evolution.
Your life TO mine is as a second 10 a
thousand years. | will let you know
that In my time have seen such sights
as would make you gasp in astonish-
ment Once, In untold ages past, long
before man had appeared on this old
world. l was alive. Yes. the dirty old
piece Of coal was living thing in those
dim, distant ages. A thing OF beauty,
too thing TO be admired. was a
fern. Not such a paltry thing as you
decorate your homes with aud grow In
little earthenware Affairs. My trunk
alone measured five feet across.
Yet was nothing out Of the ordinary.
In those days there were many little
plants forty feet or so in height Ev.
cry bit OF coal you toss about in such
needless fashion once was a living
planta plant which grew and flour
ished, even as your plants Of today
grow md flourish But u these de-
generate days plants are poor, feeble
little tRlngs, Rlgnts were plants in
those dyE We had no pettcd and
TGmpered ferns. we had DO houses OF
glass, aEtldcially kept WITH 50 that
the poor little dears Shouldn't get cold.
Those were the days OF real ferns, OF
healthy FERNS free from all newfangled
nonsense about fertilizers and soils and
aspects and such childish weaknesses.
y in those early days the earth vas not
as II Is today. II was hotter, for 1t
had cooled from globe of molten rock.
It's atmosphere was heavy with warm
vapors; close and oppressive. you would
call Il, but II just suited us. as we grew
and luxuriated I'm II. The earth's crust
was thin and heaved about. gradually
rQislng vast continents from the bed OF
the sea and slowly dragging others
deep ipto the ocean. 1t was time OF
vast changes
grew on the muddy banks Of a great
pool OF water. which was FED by slug
gish streams and bordcred by mon
strous reeds On the other side stretch
ed-a vast swamp and dark forest Of
tangled vegetation. For hundreds or
miles there was no break TO this forest
beyond few hogs and pools Of brackish
water. The sun shone hot upon me, SO
no wonder | grew well ia this humid
atmosphere Then there were frightful
storms when mighty trees were flung
down and swcr ~ he bottom
OF The poo oAe on ages be
fore nc ground II went
Nf no. Al
bottom Of the pool was q mass OF fallen
trees The newly felled trees pressed
on the bottom ones, and after thou
sands of years the water, the mud, the
heat and the pressure turned the
mighty beds OF vegetable matter into
what YOU call coal
In the dense forest II was somewhat
the same Trees were thrown down
by hurricanes; fresh ones grew and fell
victims to storms. So Il went on for
long centuries until the last forest grew
ON the top of a great thickness OF bur
led trees, ferns and mosses. Amid this
exuberant vegetation were many fam
tastic and uncouth animals. Round
about me they made the forest resound
with their hideous bcllowings. They
were SO strangely shaped that could
not well describe them to you. Even
some Of the dies had wings half foot
long from tip TO tip
One day ! saw a commotion ia the
midst II the lake far away from me.
The bed rose up and belched forth
steam and ashes and molten rock In
the years that followed the fluid rock
rolled down the sides OF the volcano
into the water below Mighty clouds
OF steam arose, and az the yapor con.
densed Il fell upon us as warm rain.
This Is why I grew SO well and why
the vegetation around me was so rank
ly luxuriant,
Many years after the land began TO
sink. Slowly II went down; slowly
the water closed over our heads until
all the mighty forests were deep under
the sea. Thus we stopped FOR count
less years. and n heavy bed Of sand nc
cumulatcd above us Then. just as
slowly. we arose until we formed a
vast elevated land. Then came other
forests-trees whose limbs were tan
gled with enormous festoons and gar
lnnds Of strange climbing plants. Ter
rible thuuderstorms alone broke tho ST.