The Arvada enterprise. (Arvada, Colo.) 1908-1970, 1920-10-21
mari BEDS Great
New Jersey Has Much Wealth In
lts Possession.
Formed Ages Ago When the Atlantic
ceAst Was Marsh and SWarmsd
With Gigantic ReptiIea

The cretaceous period may seem re-
mote from the present. and In point
Of time It is. 1t was good many ages
ago when the Atlantic coastal plain
was under water and when gigantic
saurians swarmed In ocean and marsh.
But natural processes that were un-
der way during this period are az
fecting our present civilization very Vi
tally. They touch our food. our
clothing. our industries-in fact, every
phase of life, Herschol Bickell tells the
Brooklyn Eagle. For 1t was during
the cretnceous period that Mother Ma
ture was Storing up coal and lignltes.
petroleum and marls, especially u
greensand mari which has recently
been brought prominently to the atten-
ton OF Americans by the discovery
thnt 1t Ia rich In potash.
The chief constituent Of grcensand
Is a mineral called glauconIte. which,
in technical terms. is II dull green
amorphous sIlicate of iron and potas-
stun. Glnuconlte contains from 8 to 8
per cent OF potash. This Ia removed
by treating the mineral with milk of
lime under pressure, the result being
pure caustic potash. which IL the base
for all the many potash chemicals used
In industry and also-even more impor-
tnnt at the present time-for tho best
commercial fertilizers.
The exact origin Of glnuconite Ia not
yet known, although scientists have es-
tnblished the fact that Its formation
is continuing today Mt the bottom Of
the sen, In some places from 200 to
1000 fnthoms deep. although 1t seems
to be especially favored by shallower
water of about 100 fathoms.
The fact that 1t occurs In rounded
Jumps, surrounded In many instances
by shells OF the foraminifera. minute
organisms of the bottom Of the ocean.
has given rise to the theory that In
some little understood way the decom-
position of the bodies Of these ami
mails brought about the chemical re-
action that resulted In glnucOnite.
1t Is crystalline In form but IL rare
ly found In anything like perfect crys-
tails, usually occurring In minute par
ticles. which react feebly with polarixed
light. Often free glauconite Ii found
WITHOUT traces Of the shells mentioned.
and II is believed that this occurs be-
cause ocean currents have washed
away the heavier minerals from Its
surrounding calcareOus formation. Tho
shells tend to become very friable. and
the whole mass Of glaucOnite and
shells mny easily he crushed between
the fingers.
The mari beds Of New Jersey have
been known and used as sources Of
fertilizers for az many years ~ the
state has been settled. Until recently.
however. II was for the phOsph0ric
acid and carbonate Of lime. both Of
which they contain. that the maris
were used. Their richness In potash
content. while known vaguely. had new
er been regarded as Of first import
ance, because no satisfactory process
for separating the potash had been
found.
These beds cover large area which
stretches OblIQueiy across the state
from Rnritnn bay and the Atlantic on
the southwest. Il distance Of 100 miles.
They vnry from nine to nineteen miles
In width and the average depth Of the
deposit Is 20 feet.
According to figures compiled by the
geological survey. n square mile Of
grecnsand-thcre are approximately
I DsA sun0rs, ,,,ilos NJ . In Maui voe.