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Show 04 ItO KY ~10 NTALN CEN EIO'. Although th.o country from ]~awlin pring to Gn•<'l1 River ]JI'C'Sent:-; to th eye the a 'lWCt of' d 'SOlation witlt V •ry Jit'tle V<'gPtatiml, tlH' Klll'f':ll'l' covc1 · 0cl w"ilh alkalim• t•fllore 't•nce, a1Hl tho watl'l' l:lO alkaline a11d hittPr a:-; to be o f~ · n siv to the la ·[p and unph•a ·ant in itH dft•ct::;, yt>t to tilt• '''L•ol ogir;t it i on, ol' tho mo ·t fruitful of n•o·ion . If J w ·r' to aU •mpt to work ont the grol gy in detail, it woul<l reqtlinl volum' in 'tPaLl of' a f<•w Jlagt•::; · ou I' know led'" or it i ' I i m i ted as yet, and tit ' area i::; HO larg<' that \\'(' mu -t wait y'al" bofon' it will beconw fully known. ]n the lll(':tntime w, h:w • tho <•v idcnct• tha t a ri eh reward awaits tit' p ' l','t'Ve l'ing Pxplon'l'. How many thou ·and · ol' hnmn.n bl'ing::; l1avo Loikd tlll•if' ::;low and pninful w:1.y ac1·oss these cll'y and <lu:-;ty plain·! A l'ew yean; ago, t il l' road was lin 'd willt g mvt•: allll the lrietl up bodi<•s of eattl ' an<l horsl'H. But now tho ce11<' i::; Pntin•ly l'lmno·ed. tansbul'y, in l1i ::-J <'Xl' ·lh•11 t 1· ·port, ~>ays of' tlliH country : " Tho al'temPsia eo n:-;titutt• · n<•arly t liP whole gr wth, ancl what li t til- "TaR· lmtl COJTH' 11p l1aH h<'<'ll C'O iliJll t>b• ly eaten otr by th • 100,000 aninml:-; that hare paH 'l' l bPfon• us. Thirty -one head of cleacl cattle wl'n' paSI:ll'<l on the roacll:litll· to-day, alll1 on U1P l1:wk or a small drain, wlwn> tho • lll o r<'~t·n ·e of' alkalin · Jlla1 tl•r was ah111Hla111 and rend •red th • watt·r mtu:;cou:,;ly ofl'pn iH•, nino ox 'II lay dead in OIH' hrap. They lmd lwen poison ·d dou htlc · · by tit watt>r.'' But wp mu ·t ha 'tl' ll 011 our j ourn E>y westward to Gn•on H.iver wl1 en• objects of still tkrp•r interest await our attention. 'l'h RC<'nery alo11g tbi · river i nrioui:i a11d uni qu e, difl'l'rinn· from any otltl'r whi ·It wo hn.\'l' s>en from Omaha to Ulis point, a11d we honld sec n othin n· re ·cmb ling it w r> wet travel t 'n.n Fran ·isco. The nwg1·d chamct>r f' tho ·nrf': u·p increa 'S as we proct•ed down the valley until th rivpr nnitPs with the olorado, and thl'n come tho wonderful call on which hav • n·iv >n su · h wide celebrity to tltl' latter. Photorrraph IX. illll tratPs a p 'Culim pha ·e of the ·tu-f'a · • n<>ar t he junction of Bitter· Cr ~·k with Gre •n River. The formation l:l ar• ('0111] o Pd of' thin layer of fine anc1, clay and sancll:ltone o1· chalky limo. ton\ rem1ily docomposinrr on the smf'ac •, ·o tlmt tl1e watet· w •ars an almost unlimi t<'d Sl'ries of furrows with considerable uniformity. omotint ,s on tl 10 SUilllli it H of th , l1lll or ridge ltard<•r portions a1· l •ft, whi ch wear into ca stollal<•d form . Thi peculiar appParan ., f the s tu·face i not 111tcommon all ov r the \Vest wlPr> th Crttaceous and T rtiary fo1 ·mations prevail, P cially where th •y ar compo •d of rather soft clay and and . WE TWAHD 'J'O l3EAR RIVER. 95 The black plastic clay of the Upper MissoUI'i ar ubj eet to thi tyl of weatl1 'ri nn- as wel I as much of the country u mtlly t rm d th "Bad Lands." Tl1is app •a1·ttnc of th urf'ace carri, with it also the a pr ·t of de olation, with little veg>tation but tho wild snn- -b ush , c l~>nopol iac ou ·hru bs and oth 1· plants which love tlt alkali no soi I . Littl dep1· 'H ions occur now and th •n in which th • water will accumulate jn w •t w ather, but in the dry sea son the wat 'r rvap mt · nnd th urfac' i · J •ft with a thick in ·nt ·tation of altH of oda, mag n('.' ia, •tc. I ltave alll'cl tho formation alonn- Gr pn Riv r, th "Grr n Riv r hal< s," from tho fact tl1at the sedirn 0nts :uo anann- c1 in r n-ular lay r , mo:>tly thin, like hales, varyinn-, however, from tho thickn0 sofa kni~· blad> to ·pveml feet. Thi laminnt<'d cllat·aetN, with th sligh t variations in color, <rives to the llills the pc ·ulia1· bal1l1t•d app'aran · a sh own in photogmphs XL and xrr. of "Citad •1 Hock " ancl "Cn tl • Roek." Photon-raph X. illu 'tmt a cut along th milr ad tl1r01Wh thin lay< rs of a so rt of cream-colored ehall<y lime tone. orup of th • laypr ar' of a dark hr wn colOJ', anc1 so satnra d with p •trol um as to burn with a n-ood d •al of fr ·cdom. Thi ·ut is usually call 'd the "Bnl'llin nRo k Cut," from th • fact tl1at chning the progrc s f tho work, th • 111 •n built a fir by tho side of the wall and th rock in·ni tcd, buming fo1· som days, illtunilln.tino- tl1e labors of tlt ' wo1·kmpn by night and fillin g th vali<'y witlt a d >n ·o rnoke by clay. In tho difltance may be <' •n th banks of Gro n Riv ,,. formed f imihtr ro ·k , wllich ar made np for the mo t part of silica, lime, and sorn ' ttlnmina, Pxccll nt mat1•rial for the pre t'rvation of o1·ganic r •main . B ides, all tlt ro ·k ar more ot· lP ·s imJ J't>gnatcd with th • oily ub tanc , wl1i cl1 no doubt, ori o-ina1N1 fi·om the va t qnantiti s of nnimn.l which xistcd nc> in this lak , the r •mains of whicl1 a1·o f und in tl1 gr'ate t abnnclan e verywhrrc. On0 of the· xeavati ns along tho railroad b a1· th nam of th "Petrifi. 'c1-1i. h Cut,' on ac ·ount of tho thou ·and of b eautiful and pcd't> ·t impr s ions of fi he whi ch are hown on th surfac of the thin slab , ometim a dozpn o1· two on an a1· a of a quare foot. Imp1· ssion of in· cts and wat 1' plant::-J are al o found a well a of n r mn1·kable specimen of a feather of a bird, whiclt Pro~ ssor Mar h regard as a uniqtt> specim n, forming a mo tinter-sting additi n to the bird r emains of North Am •rica. "It i the eli ·tal portion of a larg £>ather with the ·haft and vane in such excellent pr r- |