Chapter XII: Part III (2)

The most rare of all our oaks; it bears acorns but seldom,
and even then very sparingly. I have not been able to satisfy
myself whether they are biannual or not, but I am rather
inclined to believe they are. Northern slopes near Cloverdale!
in Anderson Valley! and near Forest Hill! Tree 30-40 feet high,
with a rather smooth whitish bark, and mostly long, slender,
drooping branches; evergreen. Of the quality of its wood I
could not learn anything from settlers. The tree being rare,
and occupying always moist slopes along gulches, it is not
often cut down.

18. _Quercus densiflora_, Hook. (Chestnut Oak.)

Along the Coast Range, associated with the redwood, increasing
northwards; from Santa Cruz to Mendocino City, at least, it
occurs only in or close by the redwoods. This tree attains
rather a large height in dense woods, and is then but sparingly
branched. Leaves and acorns very considerable. Its wood is
absolutely useless; it is very coarse grained, and like the
redwood wet like a sponge when cut; it is extremely perishable.
At Mendocino City log-men call it Water Oak.

19. _Castanea chrysophylla_, Dougl. (Chestnut.)

On the Oakland hills this species is but 3-6 feet high;
blooms about the fourth of July, like the Eastern _Castanea
vesca_, and bears perfect fruit. On the so-called plains at
Mendocino City, however, it is a large tree, averaging from
50-125 feet in height, and 2-3 feet in diameter. Those trees
were completely covered with blossoms on the twenty-third of
September, 1865; settlers say they never found its fruit. Here,
on the Oakland hills, it grows only on the outcropping of a
white friable slate, destitute of all vegetable remains; at the
Mendocino plains it is found to grow on a cemented gravel, upon
which the water rests for some months after the rainy season.
The supply of an aerial moisture during the dry season is in
favor of the Oakland hills, judging by the lichenose vegetation
of the two localities.

20. _Sequoia sempervirens_, Endl. (Redwood.)

This mighty tree belongs exclusively to the foggy regions of
the Coast Ranges and the underlying metamorphic sandstone,
for wherever either of these conditions is wanting, this tree
does not exist. From the northern boundary line of the State
down to the head of Tomales Bay it forms a continual forest,
increasing in width northward. At Tomales Bay the chain is
interrupted by a small bed of lime-rock. The interruption
extending from the lower foot-hills of Tamalpais down to
Belmont, is undoubtedly owing to the lowness of the hills. A
connecting link is found, however, on the Oakland hills. That
grove of redwoods, now almost entirely destroyed, affords the
strongest evidences of the dependency of that species on the
prevalence of heavy mists. From Belmont to a few miles below
Santa Cruz is another narrow continuous chain, occupying
mainly the leesides of the most western ranges and the deeper
gulches eastward. From near the mouth of Salinas River to the
head of Carmelo Valley, another long interruption is caused
by a bituminous slate. The absence of redwood in this long
interval can hardly be ascribed to any other cause, for it is
known that Monterey and the adjacent regions are subject to
heavier fogs than Santa Cruz. _Pinus insignis_ and _Cupressus
macrocarpa_ occupy here those portions naturally belonging to
the redwood and _Tsuga Douglasii_. Further south, from the head
of Carmelo Valley to San Luis Obispo, the most southern limit,
redwood occurs but sparingly, forming nowhere extensive groves.
Associated with the redwood we find _Tsuga Douglasii_, a tree
of a wide range, _Torreya Californica_, _Arbutus Menziesii_,
_Quercus densiflora_, and in Mendocino County _Abies grandis_
Dougl. There are also some shrubs and herbaceous plants truly
characteristic to them, the shrubs increasing as underwood
northward, belong mostly to the Ericaceous family. It is a
noteworthy fact that the arborescent growth of the leeside
of the first range of hills generally consists, almost
exclusively, of _Tsuga Douglasii_, and that this tree forms the
outskirt east and particularly westward. In Mendocino County
_Abies grandis_ unites with it for the same cause; there both
trees form a dense belt, facing the ocean, and are encroaching
fast on the redwood. In fact, the western portion of those
redwoods show this encroachment most strikingly by a total
absence of young redwood, and a dense, almost impenetrable,
undergrowth of the two-mentioned species. The order of things
is, however, reversed wherever the redwood has been cut.
Its roots are imperishable, and as soon as the tree is cut
they sprout and cover the soil rapidly to the exclusion of
every other species—none being of so rapid a growth. The
indestructibility of the roots prevents the clearing of such
land; even large trunks cut down cover themselves, within
two or three years, so completely with sprouts that they are
hardly seen. The entire after growth now found on the Oakland
hills, is owing solely to the indestructibility of its roots
and stumps. The tenacity of life in this species, which is
rather of rare occurrence in coniferous trees, shows itself
also in the resistance it offers to fire, so frequent in
those woods. Trees that have been bereft completely of their
branches by fire, covered themselves in a few years entirely
with young sprouts, giving the trunks the appearance of a
pillar, or remind one of those old trunks covered with _Rhus
toxicodendron_ in the East. Fire is destructive to the young
trees only; after they have obtained a thickness of two or
three feet they are not liable to perish.

Another great beneficial feature in this species is the great
power it possesses in condensing fogs and mists. A heavy fog
is always turned into a rain, wetting the soil and supplying
springs with water during the dry season. Springs in and near
the redwoods are never in want of a good supply of water, and
crops on the Coast Ranges are not liable to fail. The year
of 1864 has proved my assertion beyond doubt; this fact is
generally known—a great deal of land has been taken up since.
It is my firm conviction that if the redwoods are destroyed—and
they necessarily will be, if not protected by a wise action
of our Government—California will become a desert, in the
true sense of the word. In their safety depends the future
welfare of the State; they are our safeguard. It remains to
be seen whether we shall be benefited or not by the horrible
experience such countries as Asia Minor, Greece, Spain, and
France have made, by having barbarously destroyed their woods
and forests. But with us here it is even of a more serious
nature; wise governments would be able to replace them in those
countries, but no power on earth can restore the woods of
California when once completely destroyed!

REGULAR MEETING, NOVEMBER 6TH, 1865.

Dr. Kellogg in the chair.

Eight members present.

Donations to the Cabinet: Specimen of _Pinus ponderosa_, _Abies Douglasii_, _Taxus brevifolia_, _Larix occidentalis_, _Pteris aquilina_, and _Abies Menziesii_; presented by Mr. Dunn.

REGULAR MEETING, DECEMBER 4TH, 1865.

President in the chair.

Seven members present, and Mr. W. H. Dall as a visitor.

Major Edward Preiss and Count Oswald Thun were elected Corresponding Members.

Mr. Bolander made some remarks on a wild California Grape (_Vitis Californica_) growing near Oakland.

Professor Whitney gave an account of the explorations of Professor Pumpelly in Japan and China. An elaborate memoir, by this gentleman, containing a full account of his very important geological discoveries, will appear in the second volume of the Memoirs of the National Academy of Sciences.

Mr. Dall made some observations on the progress of the Russian American Overland Telegraph Expedition, and gave an interesting description of the region which had been traversed by the party.

REGULAR MEETING, DECEMBER 18TH, 1865.

Dr. Kellogg in the chair.

Six members present.

Dr. Ferdinand Stoliczka, Palæontologist to the Geological Survey of India, was elected a Corresponding Member.

Donations to the Cabinet: One box of shells and two of fishes, collected at Tahiti, by Mr. Andrew Garrett.

The following papers were presented.

Notice of a peculiar Astringent Gum or Coloring Substance in the Cones of the Sequoia gigantea.

BY WILLIAM P. BLAKE.

I am not aware that any notice has yet been taken by scientific
chemists of a peculiar substance, apparently a gum, which
accompanies the seeds of the great trees, and may be shaken
out of the dried cones. About twenty cones yielded me an ounce
of the material. It does not adhere to either the seeds or the
cone, but appears to have shrunk from both in drying. It falls
out in loose broken grains with brilliant conchoidal fractured
surfaces, and looks a little like dried blood. The color is
purplish-red, nearly black by reflected light, and a brilliant
carmine-red by transmitted.

The taste is strongly astringent, and suggests tannin; it is
somewhat bitter, and is similar also to that of very strong
black tea. It softens and becomes gummy between the teeth. It
dissolves completely in water and in ordinary alcohol, giving
a brilliant claret-colored solution which gradually darkens by
exposure to the air. The addition of carbonate of soda darkens
the solution and lime-water turns it black, giving a black
scaly precipitate. Dilute sulphuric acid reddens the solution
and causes a red precipitate.

It is in many respects similar to the _kino_ of the shops,
but has a brighter colored powder and streaks. The kino that
I have seen has a brownish-red streak; this substance gives a
purplish-red.

The reactions with alkalies and acids in respect to color are
similar to those of green redwood boards, which may be stained
as dark as rosewood by alkalies and red by acids.

This substance may be found to have some peculiar value in
pharmacy, or as a coloring matter for tinctures or wine. I hope
that this notice will induce a thorough investigation of its
nature and properties. If it proves to be new, I suggest that
it shall be known as _Sequonin_.

Ammonites in the Auriferous Slates of California.

BY WILLIAM P. BLAKE.

Ammonites occur in the gold-bearing slates of Bear Valley,
Mariposa County, in addition to belemnites and other fossils
already noted. The specimen I have seen is a cast, somewhat
distorted by pressure, but apparently similar to the species
from the slates on the American River, which I brought to the
notice of the academy last year.

ADJOURNED ANNUAL MEETING, JANUARY 8TH, 1866.

President in the chair.

Twelve members present.

The Curator of Conchology and the Librarian made verbal reports.

The academy then proceeded to the election of officers for the year, and the following persons were chosen.

PRESIDENT.

LEANDER RANSOM.

VICE PRESIDENTS.

R. E. C. STEARNS.
W. O. AYRES, M.D.

TREASURER.

SAMUEL HUBBARD.

RECORDING SEC’Y.

T. H. BLOOMER.

CORRESPONDING SEC’Y.

HENRY N. BOLANDER.

LIBRARIAN.

J. D. WHITNEY.

CURATORS.

H. S. HANKS MINERALOGY.
E. F. LORQUIN ZOOLOGY.
H. N. BOLANDER BOTANY.
R. E. C. STEARNS CONCHOLOGY.
W. M. GABB PALÆONTOLOGY.
H. BEHR, M.D. ENTOMOLOGY.

COMMITTEE ON FINANCE.

MESSRS. HUBBARD, STEARNS, AND FISK.

COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATION.

MESSRS. WHITNEY, MINNS, AND STEARNS.

Donations to the Library: American Journal of Science, September, 1865, from the editors. Annals of the Lyceum of Natural History of New York, Vol. VIII, Nos. 2-5. Journal de Conchyliogie, (3) V, 1, 2. Sea-Side Studies in Natural History, from Alex. Agassiz. Proceedings of the Boston Society of Natural History, 1864, Sheet 1. Astronomical and Meteorological Observations made at the U. S. Naval Observatory during the year 1863. Check List of the Fossils of California and Nevada, by W. M. Gabb.

The following biographical sketch of Thomas Bridges was read by Mr. Dall.

Memorial Sketch of Thomas Bridges, Esq., F.L.S., F.Z.S., and Member of the Cala. Acad. Sci.

BY W. H. DALL, ACTING DIRECTOR SCI. CORPS, W. U. T. EX.

Mr. Bridges was born at Lilly in Hertfordshire, England, on the
twenty-second of May, 1807.

At an early age he became interested in Natural History, and
when about nineteen or twenty—having previously studied for
some three years under Sir William Hooker, at Kew Gardens—he
sailed for Valparaiso. He remained here or passed the time in
some of the adjoining provinces, from 1827 to 1844, when he
returned to England on a short visit. On again reaching South
America, he undertook the explorations in Bolivia, so well
known to naturalists, through their magnificent results. During
the course of this journey, in June, 1845, he discovered and
obtained seeds of the great South American Water Lily, the
_Victoria Regia_, Lindley. Although the plant had previously
been detected, to Mr. Bridges belonged the honor of first
introducing it into the old world, by transporting seeds which
subsequently germinated at Kew.

In 1846, he returned to England, where for many months he
was prostrated by severe illness contracted in his arduous
explorations.

In 1847, he was married to Miss Mary Benson, of Bristol,
England, a niece of the eminent collector, the late Hugh
Cuming. Soon after he proceeded again to Valparaiso.

In 1851, he visited and explored the island of Juan Fernandez.

In the report of Lieut. Herndon, U. S. N., on his explorations
of the Amazon, he acknowledges his obligations to Mr. Bridges,
for invaluable information furnished, in regard to the
head-waters of that river.

In 1855, he proceeded to Panama, remaining there some six
months; and from thence to England, subsequently to France, and
finally to California, where he arrived in November, 1856.

About 1857, he went to British Columbia, and remained nearly
two years, collecting and exploring. In the winter of 1858,
his family, hitherto in Europe, rejoined him. Since then San
Francisco has been his home, though travelling in many parts of
California.

In April, 1865, he undertook his ill-starred journey to
Nicaragua. His explorations here were limited principally to
the lake country, where he passed some five months exploring
the dense and tangled jungles of the vicinity; ascending the
volcanoes of Mombacho and Ometepec, and visiting Leon and
Granada. In June, he met at San Juan del Sur, our well-known
botanist, Dr. Torry, on his way to San Francisco. These two
kindred spirits passed several pleasant days together.

He left Nicaragua on the steamship Moses Taylor, Capt Blethen,
on the third of September, 1865, apparently in perfect
health. On the fifth, the effects of the insidious malaria
of the country were evident. On the ninth, he died; being
fifty-eight years old. On the seventeenth, the body arrived in
San Francisco, and was afterwards interred at Lone Mountain
Cemetery. He leaves a widow, two daughters, and three sons.

Mr. Bridges was of a singularly retiring and modest
disposition, and very few publications of his own remain to
attest his devotion to Natural Science. But works in every
branch of study, particularly of Professor Lindley, and Sir
William Hooker, in the department of Botany, bear abundant
evidence of his untiring industry and unusual success.

That he died a martyr to his love for Natural History, there is
no room for doubt; and his most appropriate memorials are the
magnificent evergreens now adorning, through his agency, the
groves and avenues of the old world.

With all impartial naturalists, Mr. Bridges and such as he,
“who bear the burden and heat of the day,” are entitled to
honors; if not precisely of the same character as those due to
the students who in their comfortable libraries work up the
results of the collector, still to honors quite as high.

REGULAR MEETING, JANUARY 15TH, 1866.

President in the chair.

Eight members present.

Mr. Bolander presented his report, as Curator of Botany, for the year 1865, as follows.

During the past year the Herbarium of the Academy has been
increased—

1st. By a set of Hall’s Rocky Mountain Plants.

2d. By a collection of plants from the Western States, made by
Mr. Elihu Hall.

3d. By a large collection made by Mr. Canby at Wilmington, Del.

4th. By a small collection from M. S. Bebb, Esq., Washington,
D. C.

To the above-mentioned collections, I have added specimens of
each plant collected by myself during the past year.

Dr. Kellogg and myself have presented to the Academy quite
a number of Australian plants, and both Dr. Kellogg and Mr.
Bloomer have assisted me in arranging and classifying our
collections.

REGULAR MEETING, FEBRUARY 5TH, 1866.

President in the chair.

Five members present.

Mr. Dall presented the following paper by Dr. Canfield.

Notes on Antilocapra Americana, Ord.

BY DR. C. A. CANFIELD, OF MONTEREY.

The following notes were taken from 1855 to 1858, in Monterey
County, California, and were communicated to Prof. Baird in
1859.

About the first of January the old bucks all shed their
horns. A few days after, one was shot, with two hairy stumps
or horn-cores, several inches long, just tipped with growing
horn. This was observed to spread upward and downward till
the whole of the process of the frontal bone was covered with
horn. The “prong” commenced the same process at its tip, and
gradually coalesced with the main horn, leaving no suture. As
the horn increases in length it curves forward and inward.
It takes several months to perfect the new horn. The females
possess small curved horns, one to three inches long, sometimes
recurving to the skull, which were not _proved_ to be deciduous.

The horn, when shed, leaves a process of the frontal bone,
covered with hair, soon replaced as above by horn at the tip.
These facts were more minutely observed in two young bucks,
reared by hand to the age respectively of one and two years.

These facts would tend to separate the genus _Antilocapra_ from
the family _Cavicornia_, and it may possibly form a family by
itself.

Prof. W. P. Blake read a portion of a letter from Dr. C. T. Jackson of Boston, containing a notice of a remarkable spider brought from Georgia by Dr. Wilder, an account of which has been published in the Proceedings of the American Academy and of the Boston Natural History Society.

REGULAR MEETING, FEBRUARY 19TH, 1866.

President in the chair.

Nine members present.

Dr. Colbert A. Canfield, of Monterey, was chosen a Corresponding Member, and Dr. Henry Gibbons and Mr. Henry Janin, Resident Members.

Donations to the Library: U. S. Census, 1860—Agriculture; American Journal of Science, November, 1865, and January, 1866; Proceedings of the Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., April to October, 1865; Theory of Parallels, by Matthew Ryan; Description of New Species of Pupidæ, by E. S. Morse; Proceedings of Boston Nat. Hist. Soc., Vol. X, Sheet 2.

The following paper was presented.

Earthquakes in California during 1865.

BY DR. JOHN B. TRASK.

As in the preceding year we have had much frequency in shocks
of earthquake, with but trifling damage.

JANUARY 9th, 7 h.—A smart shock at Santa Rosa, Sonoma County.

JANUARY 19th, 8 h. 8 m.—A light shock at San Francisco.

MARCH 5th, 8 h. 45 m.—A light shock at Visalia, consisting of a
tremulous motion, succeeded by a roll or wave after an interval
of about four seconds.

MARCH 7th, 23 h.—A smart shock at San Francisco.

MARCH 8th, 6 h. 22 m.—A smart shock at San Francisco.

MARCH 30th, 7 h. 28 m.—A very smart shock at San Francisco;
this was felt at Oakland.

APRIL 15th, 0 h. 40 m.—A severe shock occurred at San Diego,
consisting of three waves, following each other in quick
succession; the shock was preceded with a loud rushing sound.

APRIL 18th, 13 h. 31 m.—A light shock at San Francisco, and
noticed at Angel Island and Oakland. This shock was severe at
San Juan (south), and felt at precisely the same hour.

APRIL 27th, 15 h. 56 m.—A shock at San Francisco.

MAY 24th, 3 h. 21 m.—A smart shock at San Francisco, consisting
of a single wave. At San Juan (south) the earthquake consisted
of two sharp shocks, and at Santa Cruz of one only. At the
latter localities it was three and four minutes later than at
this city.

SEPTEMBER 22d (no hour).—A smart shock occurred at Yreka.

OCTOBER 1st, 9 h. 15 m.—A very smart shock was felt at Fort
Humboldt, and throughout the district of Humboldt Bay.

OCTOBER 8th, 12 h. 46 m.—A severe shock at San Francisco.
This earthquake was the most violent of any occurring on
this peninsula since the American occupancy, but was not
sufficiently heavy to do serious damage; all the injuries
sustained to property were of a trivial nature, the principal
being the demolition of parts of the parapet walls erected
above the roofs, to shield the latter in cases of fire in
adjoining buildings; the fracture of walls in every instance
occurred in insecure buildings, and heavy buildings erected on
the made lands of the city front.

At San José, Santa Clara, and Santa Cruz, the earthquake
appears to have been equally severe as in this city. At
Petaluma, on the north, it was also quite severe. At Sacramento
the shock was not marked by the same severity as at the other
localities mentioned. At Stockton the shock was heavy, but no
damage done, nor was there any damage at Sacramento. The shock
was severe at Grass Valley.

The direction of the wave in this earthquake was north fifty
degrees west; the limited area over which it extended has not
furnished sufficient data to calculate its velocity.

This earthquake differs from all others that have occurred
in this locality in this particular: the earth continued to
vibrate with increasing and again decreasing degrees of force
for ten hours, at no time entirely ceasing during this period.

22 h. 1 m., another light shock, consisting of a single
vibration.

23 h. 50 m., another shock. After this shock the vibrations of
the earth ceased to be noticeable.

October 9th, 10 h. 34 m.—Another light shock.

11 h. 32 m., another shock. After this shock the earth
continued to vibrate at intervals till noon of the tenth.

OCTOBER 13th, 2 h. 5 m.—A smart shock at San Francisco; felt at
Oakland and Santa Clara; also at Angel Island.

OCTOBER 14th, 23 h. 45 m.—Another shock at San Francisco.

OCTOBER 15th, 3 h. 40 m.—Another shock at San Francisco.

NOVEMBER 24th, 3 h. 45 m.—A smart shock at Watsonville, Santa
Cruz Co.

DECEMBER 7th, 1 h. 15 m.—A light shock at San Francisco.

Professor Whitney presented the plate published by Mr. Haidinger, the distinguished Chief of the Austrian Geological Survey, to exhibit the structure of the Carleton meteoric iron. This plate, together with an elaborate article describing the appearance and structure of this meteorite, is published in the proceedings of the Vienna Academy of Science, Vol. XLVIII, page 301.

Professor Whitney also made some remarks on the nature and distribution of the meteorites which have, up to the present time, been discovered on the Pacific Coast and in Mexico; of these remarks the following is an abstract.

It is remarkable that no meteoric stones have ever been
discovered, either near the Pacific coast or, indeed, so far as
we know, anywhere on this side of the Rocky Mountains. Masses
of meteoric iron, on the other hand, are known to exist in
quite a number of localities, and many of these masses are of
very large size.

On page eleven, of the third volume of the Academy’s
Proceedings, I have given a list of the localities of meteoric
iron known in Arizona and Northern Mexico. This was done in
order to attract the attention of explorers and prospectors
to these remarkable masses, and in the hope of getting more
definite information in regard to some of them. Indeed, some
additional items have already been obtained in reference to the
masses there noticed.

It is stated by several persons who have visited Southern
Arizona, among whom Dr. Horn may especially be mentioned, that
it is universally believed, and vouched for by apparently
trustworthy explorers, that there are many large masses of
iron near the summit of the range next east of Tucson. This is
called on the latest map of Arizona, (that published by Mr.
Gird) the “Sierra de la Santa Caterina.” Whether this is the
same as the “Sierra de la Madera,” mentioned by Velasco, as the
locality of “enormous masses of pure iron, between Tucson and
Tubac,” I have been unable to ascertain.

Dr. J. B. Trask saw, in August, 1849, a large mass of meteoric
iron, at the village of Rio Florida, partly buried in the
ground at the corner of the plaza. This may, perhaps, be the
same mass mentioned by Mr. Bartlett, as existing “at the
Hacienda de Concepcion, on the road from Chihuahua to Rio
Florida.” Dr. Trask, however, has a distinct recollection that
the mass he saw was at the village of Rio Florida, and not at
the Hacienda.

Dr. Veatch saw, in 1849, a large mass of iron at Santa Rosa,
Coahuila, which was then in use as an anvil, at a blacksmith’s
shop, and was informed that many pieces of native iron had been
used there for various purposes. The mass which Dr. Veatch saw,
was of about the size of an ordinary anvil. It was said to have
been brought from the mountains northwest of the town. This
statement corroborates that of Schott, in the Mexican Boundary
Report. (Vol. I, Part 2, page 34.)

It is a remarkable fact, considering the abundance of meteoric
iron near our borders, that no meteorite, either stony or
metallic, has yet been found within the limits of California.
The piece of iron from Honcut Creek, found by Dr. Trask,
and supposed to be of celestial origin, proved, on careful
examination, to be ordinary cast iron. A fragment of the mass
was referred to Professor Brush, and pronounced by him not to
be meteoric. The existence of a piece of cast iron, in the
locality where this was discovered, is not easily explained.
In connection with what has just been said of the existence of
meteoric iron in California, it should be added, that Dr. J. G.
Cooper thinks that he observed some small pieces of native iron
on the Mohave River, a little above its sink. By accident no
specimen of this supposed meteorite were saved, so that it is
not possible to say that Dr. Cooper may not have been mistaken.
The attention of explorers in that region is invited to this
supposed locality.

An additional reason for believing Dr. Cooper’s observations to
be correct is, that the locality lies in the prolongation of
the path or belt in which a considerable number of masses of
meteoric iron have already been found. It is certainly either a
very interesting fact, or else a remarkable coincidence, that
the localities of meteoric iron in Arizona and northern Mexico,
lie nearly in a straight line with each other, which line
extends from northwest to southeast, for a distance of twelve
hundred and fifty miles, or from the Colorado River, at La
Paz, to the province of San Luis Potosi, in Mexico. Along this
line, at points from two hundred to two hundred and fifty miles
apart, in some places one mass of iron, and in others quite a
number of them, have fallen, indicating very strongly a common
origin for the whole, or that they may all be fragments of one
immense meteor which passed diagonally across the continent,
throwing off masses in its progress. The large mass of iron
discovered by Dr. Evans, on Bald Mountain, near Port Orford, in
Oregon, is in a locality not far distant from the path of the
supposed meteor.

The belt of meteoric iron masses may also be prolonged much
farther to the south, through Mexico, and in the same general
southeasterly direction, as far as the province of Oaxaca. The
localities in the provinces of Durango, Zacatecas, Mexico,
and Oaxaca lie very nearly in the same northwest-southeast
direction from each other; but are in a line a little to
the west of the main belt which has been traced down from
the Colorado River. It is certain that the central part of
Mexico has been highly favored in respect to the distribution
of meteoric iron masses, which are not only of frequent
occurrence, but often of large size. Perhaps it may be not too
wild a speculation to suggest, that the grand disruption of
the meteor may have taken place in this part of its course,
and that the fragments were scattered far and wide in all
directions. It certainly seems difficult to account for the
peculiar position of the masses of iron found on the Pacific
side of the continent, and their great abundance in central
Mexico, on any other theory than the one which has here been
suggested.

Authorities are not at hand for comparing the chemical
composition of all the masses belonging to this series, or
belt, which have been analyzed; but it is my impression that
those meteoric irons which have been examined do resemble
each other sufficiently, in the nature and proportion of the
ingredients they contain, to add to the probability of their
having had a common origin. The specimens thus far analyzed do
not represent more than half the localities known to exist.
A farther and more complete investigation of the physical
and chemical character of all the meteoric masses of Arizona
and Mexico, with reference to the possibility of their being
originally parts of one body, is suggested as an interesting
subject for those specially devoted to this class of researches.

The following resolution, introduced by Professor Whitney, at a previous meeting, in accordance with the Constitution, was adopted.

_Resolved_, That any Corresponding Member who may take up
his residence in this city, may become a Resident Member, on
notifying the Recording Secretary that such is his wish.

Mr. W. H. Dall was elected a Resident Member, December 4th, 1865.

REGULAR MEETING, MARCH 5TH, 1866.

President in the chair.

Eleven members present.

Donations to the Library: Société de Géographie de Genève; Mémoires et Bulletin, Tomes I-III; From F. Berton.

The following papers were presented.

Note on Octopus punctatus, Gabb.

BY W. H. DALL, ACTING DIRECTOR SCI. CORPS W. U. T. EX.

A half-decayed specimen of this species, (described by Mr.
Gabb, in Proc. Cal. Acad., Ap. 7th, 1862) discovered in some
alcoholic miscellanea, recently, afforded the following
observations.

The buccal plates or mandibles, resemble those of _O.
tuberculatus_, Blainv. [Woodw. Man. Pl. I. _Fig. 2_] but are
more produced longitudinally. They are black and very brittle.

Dental formula, 3·3·3 (_Fig. 27_, A), or 1/(1×1)·2·1·

_Rhachis_ armed with one central quinquedentate tooth, and two
lateral, simple, denticles; the insertion of all is broadly
arcuate. The _pleuræ_ are provided each with two simple
recurved uncini and one rhomboidal plate with a small recurved
hook. The central rhachidian tooth is occasionally irregular.
(_Fig. 27_, L, X). When immature, the dental laminæ are without
color, more slender, compressed, and the dentations are less
distinct. (_Fig. 27_, ‛L.) Immature rows, about 15, perfect 60,
worn and broken 25, total 100. Mag. 100 diameters. Length of
specimen 3 feet. Locality, near San Francisco. From the market.

Professor Whitney communicated the following abstract of the results obtained by M. Rémond in his geological explorations of Northern Mexico, made in 1863 to 1865, and drawn up from his notes and specimens, after reference of the fossils obtained to Mr. Gabb and Dr. Newberry. M. Rémond has gone to Chili to continue his geological investigations, if his health permits; and he expects to write out a more detailed account of his Mexican work, whenever he has an opportunity of doing so. In the mean time, however, it is his desire that this abstract should be drawn up and published, that at least the more important results may be placed as soon as possible in the hands of those interested in the development of the geological structure of those countries which border on the Pacific coast. In presenting this paper, Professor Whitney desired to express his admiration of the courage and endurance with which M. Rémond had prosecuted his investigations in Mexico, where he had to contend with every kind of difficulty and danger, but where, however, he had obtained results of great value, throwing the first rays of light on the age of the formations of a very interesting and economically important mining region—a region which has been often visited, but where, previous to M. Rémond’s examinations, no positive evidence of the geological position of any of the stratified rocks had been obtained, and no clue given to the relations of the metalliferous veins to each other, or to the rocks in which they are inclosed.

Notice of Geological Explorations in Northern Mexico.

BY A. RÉMOND.

[Compiled from his notes, and prepared for publication, by J.
D. Whitney.]

1. PRELIMINARY REMARKS.

The mountainous region comprising the central and western
portion of Northern Mexico, belongs to the four States of
Durango, Chihuahua, Sinaloa, and Sonora. Considering how
celebrated this portion of Mexico has become for its mines and
metalliferous veins, and how much has been written about it,
it is surprising how little exact information has hitherto
been obtained with regard to either its geography or geology.
On comparing the principal published maps[21] of the region in
question, it will be seen at once how much they differ from
each other in their delineations of even its main topographical
features, while the details are entirely wanting.

The name of the “Sierra Madre” is usually applied to the main
range of mountains of this country, or the western border of
the plateau which stretches north through the territories
of the United States, forming what may be called the great
orographical feature of the continent. In Northwestern
Mexico this crumpled border of the great plateau comprises
an extensive mountainous region, by no means forming a
continuous single chain, but rather several central ranges,
with associated groups of parallel ridges, all having the
same general course, which is approximately north-northwest,
and south-southeast. As the breadth of the chain widens as we
go towards the north, so, too, that of the valleys increases
in that direction, the whole system of mountains and valleys
spreading out in something like a fan shape.

Going north, the chain appears to sink gradually, although
determinations of altitude in Northern Mexico are extremely
few in number. It is certain that there is, in about latitude
32°, a depression of the mountain ranges which extends entirely
across the continent, and which would enable the traveler to
cross from the Atlantic to the Pacific, without necessarily
surmounting any elevation greater than four thousand feet.[22]
The southeastern range is the highest, and the culminating
point is said to be the Cerro de Cuiteco, sixty leagues
northeast of Jesus Maria, on the western border of Chihuahua.
The approximate altitude of the Cumbre de Basascachic is
seven thousand four hundred and twenty-nine feet, and that of
Guadalupe y Calvo, seven thousand eight hundred and twenty-five
feet. To the north, the ranges east of Sahuaripa are also very
high; but they have never been measured. No peaks or ridges,
however, in this portion of Mexico attain anything like the
elevation of the higher portion of the Sierra Nevada, few if
any points exceeding ten thousand feet in altitude.

The direction of the sierra is nearly that of a line connecting
some of the best mining districts in Mexico, which are situated
on or very near the summit of the mountains. These districts
are the following, enumerating them in their geographical order
from the south towards the north: In Durango, San Antonio de
las Ventanas, Guarisamey, and San Dimas, remarkable for their
auriferous silver ores, and sixty-two Mexican leagues northeast
of Mazatlan; in Chihuahua, Guadalupe y Calvo, and San Pedro
de Batopilas, yielding fine specimens of native silver; also,
Jesus Maria, in the same State, and the Real del la Cieneguita,
Sonora, with silver and gold mines.

2. GENERAL GEOLOGY.

The geological structure of the occidental slope of the Sierra
Madre, as well as that of the other parts of this great chain,
is exceedingly interesting, and, as yet but very little known,
notwithstanding the valuable investigations of Humboldt and
other eminent men; for, up to the present time, the age
of the different formations has never been fixed with any
degree of accuracy, from want of materials and of sufficient
observations. In 1863, 1864, and 1865, however, I explored
quite a number of localities in northwestern Mexico, and was
thus enabled to obtain a pretty good general idea of the
geology of that region; and, in Sonora, to which my attention
was especially devoted, I succeeded in finding fossils in
sufficient quantity to allow of the determination of the age
of the principal formations of the northern Sierra Madre. By
tracing the connection of these rocks with those of Central
Mexico, additional light will be thrown on those districts of
which, at present, but little is definitely known.

The igneous rocks, which occur more abundantly on the Pacific
slope, are granites, either fine or very coarse-grained;
porphyries, more or less feldspathic; and greenstones, all of
which are cut by numerous dykes of extremely varied character.
The granites, however, are very poor in veins of the precious
metals, while the porphyries are highly metalliferous. In
Sinaloa (Candelero) and Durango (San Dimas) we see that the
granites underlie the metalliferous porphyries, and that the
greenstones, in Sonora, (near Hermosillo and in the vicinity of
La Haciendita) penetrate through them.

The oldest sedimentary rocks, which I have observed, belong to
the Carboniferous series; this is represented in the eastern
part of Sonora, by heavy masses of limestone, forming very
high and rugged ridges, running a little west of north. The
upturned strata are seen, in many places, to rest on granite.
Argentiferous veins occur throughout this formation.

The next group of sedimentary rocks, in order, is the Triassic;
this forms isolated mountain groups in Sonora, and offers an
interesting field for investigation. Instead of limestones,
it is made up of heavy beds of quartzites and conglomerates,
with coal-bearing clay shales; all of these are disturbed and
elevated, and rest on greenstones, feldspathic porphyries,
or granite. Wherever metamorphosed, the Triassic rocks are
auriferous and contain veins of silver ores. The metamorphic
slates and limestones of the Altar and Magdalena districts,
which include the richest gold placers of Sonora, may possibly
be of Triassic age; but the fossils collected are too imperfect
to admit of this being determined. There are some reasons for
believing those rocks to be rather of Jurassic than of Triassic
age, as they differ in lithological characters from both the
Triassic and Carboniferous of Northern Mexico, resembling,
rather, the Jurassic gold-bearing slates of the Sierra Nevada,
in California; besides, they lie outside and to the west of
the Sierra Madre. It may also be noticed that the gold which
they furnish does not resemble that obtained from the Triassic
strata.

The Cretaceous period is also represented at the foot of the
Sierra Madre, at Arivechi, in Sonora. The strata belonging to
this series are chiefly argillaceous shales, and they rest
upon porphyries and Carboniferous limestone. They have been
disturbed and elevated since their deposition. The fossils,
which they contain in great number and in a fine state of
preservation, will be noticed farther on.

All the above mentioned formations were already in existence
before the first eruption of the volcanic rocks took place.
These latter are found scattered along the whole Pacific coast,
and extend from the Gulf of California up to the very summit
of the sierra. It is very interesting to see the volcanic
formations spread over so extensive a region, especially as
there are no active volcanoes known in Northern Mexico, and not
even any indications of ancient craters or vents.

The lithological character of the eruptive materials is
extremely varied, and there seem to have been several periods
of igneous action preceded by as many disturbances of the
strata, all of which took place after the close of the
Cretaceous epoch. Three different series of volcanic rocks may
be observed in Sinaloa and Sonora, unconformable with each
other; and these may again be subdivided into groups, after
a thorough examination has been made of the extensive suite
of specimens which has been collected. The lower, or oldest
series, affords several hundred varieties of porphyries,
characterized by crystals of feldspar or augite. There are
also very peculiar trachytic rocks, resembling granite in
appearance. These volcanic materials occur in beds or in
masses, and are frequently cut by dykes; but they are quite
destitute of veins containing gold or silver, the only
metalliferous ores they contain being those of copper (?) and
iron, and these in small quantity. Various volcanic ridges in
Sonora belong to this class. The second series consists of
extensive beds of micaceous, trachytic tufas, and breccias,
all more or less uplifted since their deposition, and covering
the different igneous and sedimentary formations as well as
the older volcanic porphyries. These attain a great thickness,
between San Dimas and San Ignacio, in Durango and Sinaloa.

Above these formations occur ancient alluvial deposits, with
bones of extinct animals (elephants) at two localities; near La
Noria, northeast of Mazatlan, and in the Arroya de la Palma,
two leagues east of La Casita, in Sonora.

Sheets of basaltic lavas, somewhat similar to those of
California, and probably of the same age, forming with tufas
the upper volcanic series, overlie the other formations,
occupying a nearly horizontal position.

The most recent formation is that of the terrace deposits of
sand and gravel, which occur in Sonora.

Having thus given a general sketch of the principal groups of
rocks developed in the region in question, I pass to a more
detailed description of the different formations.

GRANITES.

Underlying all the rocks in Durango and Sinaloa, and probably
posterior to the Carboniferous limestones, which they have
in places extensively metamorphosed, are masses of granite.
These may be seen in many places between the coast and San
Dimas, either occupying the bottoms of the valleys, or forming
independent hills. There are two well-marked varieties: Of
these the first are syenites, more or less fine-grained,
and consisting of a mixture of feldspar, variously colored,
quartz, black or green hornblende, and black or brown mica,
the latter usually in hexagonal plates. Localities of this
variety are: Haval, Las Higueras, San Ignacio, Santa Apolonia,
Candelero, La Noria, Zaragoza, etc., in Sinaloa; San Marcial
and Tecoripa valleys, Hermosillo, in Sonora. The other variety
is either very coarse-grained, consisting of white feldspar,
gray quartz, and plates of silvery mica, or else finer
grained, and chiefly made up of feldspar; these occur, forming
mountains and ridges in Sonora, in the Sierra del Amolé, near
La Magdalena, Sierra del Espinaso Prieto, near Hermosillo,
and the Sierra de Mazatan, south of Ures. The fine-grained
granites contain argentiferous veins at Zaragoza, in Sinaloa,
and east of Topisco, in Sonora. These are traversed by numerous
intersecting dykes of diorite, feldspar, and quartziferous and
feldspathic porphyries, especially well seen near Hermosillo,
and the Cajon de los Carrisos, east of San Antonio de la
Huerta. There are no metalliferous veins where the granite is
thus intersected by dykes.

METALLIFEROUS PORPHYRIES.

These may be divided into two groups. The first consists of a
rock occurring in large irregular masses or beds, and having a
dark colored argillaceous base, through which are disseminated
small crystals of whitish feldspar. This variety, which is
probably older than the granites, includes some of the richest
mines of the Sierra Madre; as those of Candelaria, Bolaños,
Cinco Señores, etc., near San Dimas, in Durango; and which
have yielded over $20,000,000. There are also rich veins in
this kind of rock at Candelero, fifty-two leagues northeast
of Mazatlan, in Sinaloa. All these veins run northeast and
southwest, and are cut at right angles by dykes. The second
variety of porphyry is a gray feldspathic rock, apparently made
up of labradorite and magnetic iron ore; this overlies the
greenstones, and is covered by the Triassic beds at Los Bronces
and San Javier, where there are three systems of argentiferous
veins. The Nahuila mine, one of the best in Sonora, is in this
rock.

METAMORPHIC ROCKS.

Heavy masses of metamorphic rocks may be seen at various
localities in Sinaloa and Durango (Tecomate, Tenchoquelite,
Arroyo del Ciruelo, Arroyo de San Vincente) resting either
on the granites or the metalliferous porphyries. These rocks
occur in masses or beds, sometimes distinctly stratified, and
sometimes without any traces of the original bedding. They
are always much altered and broken up. Their lithological
characters are not well marked, although the series is easily
recognized. The rocks referred to in this division, are usually
fine-grained, of a greenish or bluish color, when not too much
decomposed, and somewhat argillaceous in composition. At the
base they pass into porphyries. The argentiferous veins cut
both the metamorphic and the porphyritic rocks at Tecomate,
on the Rio de San Ignacio, where the dip of the formation is
to the northeast, at an angle of 70°. Between La Puerta and
El Pilar, Arroyo de San Dimas, they occur in jaspery layers,
ribboned with green and brown hues, and resemble some of the
metamorphic Triassic rocks of Sonora. Near Candelero, the
metamorphic rocks are associated with whitish, semi-crystalline
limestone. The formation in question may be observed in many
other localities in Sinaloa, always resting on granite and
passing into porphyry; it is also sometimes associated with
metamorphic slates.

GREENSTONES.

These rocks occur in heavy masses or in beds, and are made
up of a fine-grained, compact mixture of hornblende and
feldspar, often containing mica, and having a greenish color.
The greenstone underlies the Triassic rocks, and in many
places it protrudes through the granite. This rock is highly
metalliferous at Copála, Sinaloa, and also at Los Bronces and
San Javier, in Sonora. The greenstones or diorites which occur
in the granite, appear to be anterior to the metalliferous
greenstones, and the latter are posterior to the Triassic.

CARBONIFEROUS LIMESTONES.

The Carboniferous limestones form high ridges parallel with the
general course of the Sierra Madre, from Hermosillo, north of
Guaymas, east of Sahuaripa. These ridges become more elevated
as we approach the crest of the Sierra. The rocks of this
formation are fine-grained and bluish in color, and form heavy
beds with intercalated schistose layers; they contain nodules
and beds of flint. There are some clay slates at the base of
the formation. The thickness of the whole series is probably
over five thousand feet. The principal localities where these
Carboniferous rocks may be observed are as follows, naming them
in order from west to east:

1st. Hermosillo, where they rest on syenitic granite and are
highly metamorphosed, the limestones being converted into
white saccharoidal marble, and the slates into garnet and
epidote rock. Dykes of green porphyry cut through the beds of
sedimentary rock, which beds have a strike of about N. 65° W.,
and stand nearly vertical.

2d. Five leagues from Hermosillo, at La Cruz; in the Cerro de
Santa Teresa on the south, and the Sierra de Las Animas on the
north. Here the limestones contain crinoids.

3d. Four leagues farther on, between La Noria and El Aguajito;
here are high granite ridges with a granite axis.

4th. Twenty leagues from Hermosillo, south of Ures;
Carboniferous rocks upheaved on the southwest side of the
granitic Sierra de Mazatan. The direction of this range is from
northwest to southeast, and its height sixteen hundred varas,
according to M. De Fleury; here are a few silver mines.

5th. Haciendita, nine leagues farther northeast. The beds here
are metamorphosed and much disturbed, dipping northeast; these
outcrops form low hills.

6th. Between Mátape and Batuco; a very high ridge of granite,
running in a northerly direction, with limestone resting upon
it. To the north and east of Topisco the limestones attain a
great thickness and afford fine fossils. At the Cerro de la
Bonacina, one of the highest points of the range, a variety of
corals, crinoids, and brachiopods may be seen weathered out
from the surface of several beds of hard, compact limestone,
of various colors; these beds are near the summit of the
mountain. This locality was first discovered by Don Antonio
Moreno, Engineer of the Bronces mine. The strata here are much
disturbed, and appear to have been folded into a mass with a
synclinal structure.[23]

TRIASSIC ROCKS.

This formation is usually highly metamorphosed, and passes
into porphyries at its base. The strata are more or less
inclined, and the lower beds are very much contorted and
disturbed. The rocks referred to the Trias extend from Soyopa
to San Javier; but they are developed on a more extensive scale
between San Antonio de la Huerta and Los Bronces, forty-two
leagues northeast of Guaymas. The Triassic rocks form a chain
of high and rugged mountains extending from south-southeast to
north-northwest. The isolated mining districts of Tecoripa and
San Marcial (between Los Bronces and Guaymas) are in the same
formation; it also crops out from under the stratified volcanic
rocks at the Punta de Agua, between San Marcial and Guaymas.
The metalliferous greenstones and porphyries, previously
noticed, form the nucleus around which the Triassic beds have
been upheaved. These beds are seen near San Javier and Los
Bronces, two mining towns which are situated on greenstone, but
which skirt the foot of a small ridge of feldspathic porphyry,
much less elevated than the metamorphic rocks themselves. They
are also seen overlying granite, near the Cerro Colorado,
between Soyopa and Los Bronces, and south of Tecoripa.
The Cerro de la Nahuila, the highest point but one in the
district, lies southeast of the Sierra de Mazatan. There are
three principal divisions of the Triassic, which occur in the
following order, the first mentioned being the lowest:

{ { Quartzites and clay slates;
{ { Black, jaspery schistose layers;
{
1.{ or, where the rocks are less altered:
{
{ { Black clay shales with beds of coal;
{ { Argillaceous sandstones.

2. Quartzites, in great thickness.

3. Heavy beds of conglomerate.

The interstratified clay shales and grits of the lower member,
crop out in several places along the Cañada de Santa Maria, at
the bottom of the ravines below Los Bronces. Here, there are
three or four beds of good anthracite coal, with a considerable
number of well-preserved plants occurring in the associated
clay shales, both above and below the coal.

[A portion of these plants were referred by me to Dr. Newberry
for examination, and he has given the following list of them.
1. _Strangerites magnifolia_, Rogers; Trans. Assoc. Am.
Geologists, p. 306, Pl. xiv. A species occurring in the Trias
(?) of Virginia and North Carolina. 2. _Pecopteris falcatus_,
Emmons; Geol. of N. Car., Pl. iv, fig. 9. The specimens are
too imperfect to decide on the identity of this plant with
_Saccopteris germinans_. ?3. _Pecopteris bullatus_, Bunbury;
only in fruit; nervation obscure; identity not certain, but
very probable. 4. _Otozamites Macombii_, Newb. At top of “red
beds” or “gypsum formation,” at the base of the Cretaceous
rocks, copper mines near Abiquiu, New Mexico. There is no
doubt about this species, and it forms an important connecting
link. ?5. _Pterozamites decussatus_, Emmons; specimens very
imperfect. 6. _Pecopteris_, n. sp.; a very neat and peculiar
species as yet undescribed. It may be the same as one badly
figured by Emmons (Pl. II, fig. 1.) 7. _Alethopteris_, n.
sp.; small fragments of the frond of a splendid new species.
From this enumeration it will be seen that there can be but
little doubt of the Triassic age of the formation in which
these plants occur. A large lot of these plants, collected
by M. Rémond, has been recently received, and among them are
much better specimens of some of the species noticed by Dr.
Newberry, and several quite new ones. These will also be
examined, described, and figured within a short time. J. D. W.]

The strike and dip of the clay shales in the different ravines
vary considerably, but the dip is usually to the southeast.
The superincumbent quartzites are more regular in their
inclination. There are dykes of feldspathic rock cutting
through both the coal and the shales.

The following section represents, in an ascending order, the
position of the coal-bearing strata in the Cañon del Retiro,
near Los Bronces.

1. Coarse quartzites with conglomerates.
2. Conglomerate, 8 feet.
3. Argillaceous and schistose grits, 3 feet.
4. Clay shales, with impressions of plants, 8 feet.
5. Gray grits, 4 feet.
6. Bluish clay shales with ferns, 12 feet.
7. Coal, 2 feet.
8. Compact black clay shales, 5 inches.
9. Coal, 2 feet 6 inches.
10. Clay shales with leaves, several feet.
11. Coarse grits.

Another section, measured at the foot of the Cerro de la Aguja,
was as follows.

1. Compact gray grits.
2. Gray clay shales with seams of coal and plants, 4 feet 6
inches.
3. Bluish argillaceous grits, 2 feet 6 inches.
4. Contorted black clay shales, with seams of coal, 5 feet
6 inches.
5. Coal, 2 feet 6 inches.
6. Black, compact clay shales, 3 feet.
7. Coal, 7 inches.
8. Carbonaceous clay shales, 8 inches.
9. Coal, 3 inches.
10. Clay shales and argillaceous grits.

[Specimens of the coal brought to San Francisco by M. Rémond,
are anthracite, evidently of superior quality. J. D. W.]