The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1906-08-17

Around HUDSON Bay, and between
1T and the great lakes. and thence
northeastward to Labrador. Sub
sequently, in the course of time.
other parts appear above the ocean
waters; principally around the
borders OF the continent, SO that.-it
was at all times some what basin
shaped, and as the whole continent
vas elevated 1.-THE interior .became
a shallow sea. which. no doubt, was
sometimes entirely out of water and
at other times below it; for in
reaching it's present form and alti-
tude, the surface G! the continent
underwent many changes, locally
and generally, extending over mill
lions of years. Various parts, and
sometimes the whole continent
rising. and at other times sinking
so shaping the surface that at times
great areas were covered with water
for centuries, sometimes salt, some
times fresh. Ia later periods, as the
continent rose and the mountains
formed, the great interior became
so Shut off from the ocean and so
surrounded by higher lands as to
become a great basin filled with
water, and there is little question
but that i'm later Tertiary times the
the country between the Rocky
Mountains and the James river and
the Missouri river below the junction
Of the James. river, and, in fact. the
mountain system itself, was much
lower than it is now and much of it
so depressed as to form the basin for
a great inland sea, eventually
becoming fresh water. which no
doubt existed for MANY thousands of
years in the later tertiary period,
during which time great eluvial
deposits were made over its bottom
in almost level strata, sometimes of
mud. clay, sand and gravel, decom-
posed and dis~integrated by the
action of air, water, heat and frost;
sometimes in the shape Of volcanic
output, as well.as remains of vege-
table and animal life, both aquatic
and dry land. Many skeletons and
bones of the animals and reptiles
and fish OF the time becoming en-
bedded in and covered by the
deposits were petrified and now
constitute the interesting fossils of
that region. In the locality Of the
Bad Lands, the principal later
Tertiary deposits happened to form
a loose, porous, crumbling, chalky
soil called Brule clay, and l should
think from three to five hundred.
feet thick, in some places covered
by a rocky formation such as is now
found upon the tops Of the higher
buttes and ranges. After a long
tine, as the basin OF the sea filed
with these deposits, and the
continent gradually rose, the waters
receded-in this locality in q general
southeasterly notwithstanding the
country almost level, except where
local upheavals or depressions we're
caused by the movement of the
earth's crust, as in the case OF the
Black Hills. But the region where
the Bad Lands are located is not an
u%pheaNal. the %receding waters leav-
ing it quite level and of the same
elevation as the surrounding
country. Its present condition is
the result principally of the action
OF flowing waters at some time since
the formation was completed.
Probably many years after it became
a dry plain, subsequent to the up
heaval of the Black Hills, great
floods Of water have flowed across
the country in a general easterly
course toward the great valley lead
ing to the Gulf of Mexico, the
waters apparently coming from the
northwest around both sides Of tile
Hills. The soil in the BAD Lands
region being Of a loose nature,
porous and crumbling, easily dis
trihuted by water, it was rapidly
cut out into bitches and gullies,
which deepened and widened, form
ing broad channels, eventually
merging into n main channel
many miles wide, between tine two
great walls or banks Of what is now
the Bad Lands basin, the waters
rushing, whirillng and tearing away
the soil and carrying it away down
the White river until almost the
entire region was washed away, leav-
ing here and there parts of the
original formation standing around
and Though which the waters
curled, slashed and flowed, carving
and cutting them into strange and
varied shapes-the mounds, nobs,
buttes and ragged, weather worn
elevations, banks and ridges that
are the beautiful and interesting