The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1906-01-11
FOSSIL C0RKSCREWS
9UEER FREAKS Of NATURE 14Ar
ABOUND m NEBRASKA.

''' " 'i''''"i iitNl-
ionod SO h"themoticniiy as 90 Be
Easily Mistaken at First Glance
For Works of Art
Nobodv kuovs wifi, ,cr.,i,t,. ,,.i,.,,
., .,llo1 .lo,.fi.. ,.,.,.,.. .. ....,
r,,..,.... r....,.,
', '''''' ~ '.'i'' vi ,''"'
nus III ''''''''N'' 'l'''' P''u'uI"'I'
HioGN county ana some OF them are
much as Forty feet IN height, without
Vomiting the gigantic roots" presently
b be described. Quartz Is thc sub
gncc OF which tl,y are mad, Inn,
,,.. fbcv cq,,s Fl, l.. i,,i,J5..i ,,,,,
1..... .......,.. ....,..
'.' ~ ''i". ~" Us ''o'' ''"" any
oNl can ''II' "hi''7' j n'p'' one U.''
70 ID DC m'uuoh'I T. 's 10 We "c-
p,ed as correct.
on are traN'uu&, lrt us say, on
orsehnck through That part of the
Duntry. anu, as often happens. You
F., standing ont from the face of %
ndst0ne elm, gigantic spiral IT, as
n JlogistS have proved. the sandstone
tx be Clipped away corkscrcw
1ldped thing Of quartz is exposed to
few. fashioned 50 m0'hcm0tic0lly os
ID bc easily mistaken at first glance
81 n work Of art The white spiral
may be free as a sculptor would say,
b', in other cases, may be twincd about
sort Of axis, as vine would run
&Oound u vertical pole.
tSomebody awhile ago gave to these
tirals the name "dcyirN corkscrcws"
Nh want OF better and as expressive
pf the mystery of their origin. Scicn
|ists discussed them in vain. and many
Zbeorics were formed in regard to them.
There were authorities who declared
they were fossil burrows excavated in
tertiary times by gophers of n huge
ard extinct species. And, TO confirm
Ibs notion the bones of some burrow-
ng animal were actually found lmbed-
ied In the substance Of one of the
tcrews."r This seemed TO settle the
natter for awhile. until the controversy
MAS started again by the discovery of
BE- osscous remains. under like condi-
hons. of small deer. Nobody cou Il
Wort that deer was ever a burro.-
ng animal. aud so that notion had 30
n abandoned.
Other theorists declared that the "r1s-
d twisters," MS some folks called them,
epresentcd the prehistoric borings Of
dgantic worms that lived I'm the very
ong ago Yet others suggested that
hey were petriiied vines, though II was
ullicult to explain how or why the
poles on which the alleged vines
.Nmed in many cases to have been
hlned ha3 been so admirably pre-
erved or, for that matter, originally
fected.
I'm the midst of so many contradictory
beorles the problem seemed likely to
tfy solution indefinitely. The one that
tld out longest and gained most ad'
trents was that OF the eNtlncf gopherS
accounted Tor .the ROOF "A shaPe'
appehdage olleh nearly as DIE as
v "tWlster ltseli ana altacheu 10 tho
Ner ehu OF 'he lat'er-"n'ch obvious. 'l.,
us 1t see'Ieu' huu ue'', '''e iIU'l VI
rodent ANIMAL Tue corhScreW rep
eth'ihg the Spirol noie .! "nicn "
'ue us way 10 tLe Suiiace VI unV
ouIlu' Nnot cou,u poSS'"'! pe iiioi'
" 10 'oiiip[eheuu
ro,eSsor f. H. narpout' ho"eNo''
u''''loi anu n'H "'clS'oi' -
s''eu prov 'lsloi'i'S "il'li soH'eoouy
u''S pP,'''-,u'V '.c co'NsV'cWs are
N'Setap!e origin lh'y are ne us.
Is the io'Sli re'''"ii'S Vi ""Cieu'
er NeeuS Vi H's"nuc s'%c' "ni1n
Of" 'ili'oHs oi St"rs "so On 'lt uol'
~ oi " Nast Sne.V VI wafer 'nu' ooN'
" an Oh NepfaSN'' neae llust ha'e
~ lle p.SSeSt "O""uG PI"n'S ,n"'
" eA'S.eu' anu ""'" 'n' ""S' 'nNV
oNerno"eu 'lc res,on III ques''o'i
up 'ne remains VI many VI ',o
"'' 49,