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 ORIGIN OF THE PRAIRIES. 
 
 Read before the Ottawa Academy of Natural Sciences, Dec. 
 30, 1869, by Hon. J. D. Caton, LL. D. 
 
 I PROPOSE to offer some observations on the Origin of 
 the Prairies, though it may seem like presumption in me 
 to attempt the discussion of a subject which that greatest 
 of nature's students, the immortal Humboldt, seems stu- 
 diously to have avoided. He describes to us all the prai- 
 ries of the world, a great portion of which he had per- 
 sonally examined. He gives us their area, their geogra- 
 phy, their topography, their surrounding, their components 
 and their products, but gives us no word of suggestion 
 or explanation why they are destitute of trees, when sur- 
 rounded and interspersed everywhere by forests. This, 
 indeed, seems very remarkable in one who was, porhaps, 
 the most extraordinary man that ever lived for observing, 
 studying and explaining every interesting phenomenon in 
 nature. Why has not he, the most able of all men to 
 discuss it, favored us with his views on this subject? We 
 are hardly at liberty to suppose it was a mere oversight, 
 and are loth to believe that he considered the inquiry of 
 so little importance as to be unworthy of his notice. This 
 would be too severe a reflection upon all those who have 
 since considered the inquiry worthy of the most serious 
 consideration. Since his tin\e it has been the subject of 
 much study and of many and conflicting theories. Al- 
 though he, whom of all others we should listen to with 
 the greatest interest, in answer to this inquiry, has, so far 
 
 m^ 
 
2 On)r/t] of the Prah/cs. 
 
 as I know, not chosen to enlighten us with his views, 
 yet the origin of the Prairies is a theme which has com- 
 manded the ittention of many, both of those whose 
 eminent attainments entitle them to the appellation of 
 learned, and those who dwell upon them but make no 
 pretensions to such distinction. By the former, theories 
 have been af^vanced and elaborated and placed on re- 
 cord, oome of which are quite inconsistent with others, 
 so that all of them, at least, cannot be true; and proba- 
 bly we should not be very far out of the way should 
 we conclude that some errors have crept into all, and 
 also that none of them are entirely destitute of truth. 
 Indeed, we are sometimes inclined to the belief that each 
 one has written as if called upon to advance something 
 entirely original, and this may have led some to the very 
 borders of absurdity, and would almost induce the belief 
 that their authors had never seen a prairie. Upon this, as 
 upon all other subjects where we must depend upon evi- 
 dence to lead us to correct conclusiotis, it is indispensable 
 that we proceed upon facts and, so far as possible, all the 
 facts which can enlighten our judgments upon the sub- 
 ject. The very moment we proceed upon assumed facts 
 which in truth do not exist, then most likely the first step 
 will be error, and so we shall be led by false lights to 
 the very end, and it will be remarkable if our conclusions 
 
 are not erroneous. 
 
 All men, and especially uhe learned, are, perhaps, too 
 prone to theorizing, and such is the weakness of hu- 
 man nature that when a theory is once formed and an- 
 nounced, it is our child, our offspring, our fondling, and 
 we seem to feel the obligation of a parent to ever after 
 maintain and support it. Though, as it grows up, it may 
 become deformed and ugly, and unworthy of our further 
 care, it requires the stoicism of the Roman father to dis- 
 
 \ 
 
 e"*- 
 
 / 
 
 
 L 
 
Or f gin of the Puihic!^. 3 
 
 card it and order its execution. All manner of violence 
 is done to facts to win support and sustenance for the 
 bantling, and every grain of proof in its defense is made 
 to weigh a pound. 
 
 Each of the theories which have been advanced .n this 
 subject undoubtedly has some facts for its support, and 
 possibly may account for the formation of some prairies; 
 but neither is capable of accounting for ^^}\ prairies. Hence 
 I conclude that various causes have contributed to the 
 formation of the prairies. It may be that some prairies 
 have been formed by processes entirely different from pro- 
 cesses which have formed others. 
 
 But, first of all, in the discussion of this subject, and 
 so it is of all others, it is necessitry to have a distinct un- 
 derstanding of the subject to be discussed. We must 
 know precisely what particular facts are to be explained, 
 what phenomena are to be accounted for. There arc two 
 distinct elements to be considered in the discussion of this 
 subject. The one is the deposition of the soils and the 
 configuration of the surfaces of the prairies; and the other 
 is the absence of arborescent vegetation upon them, in 
 what may be termed their natural state, while they are 
 clothed with a rich coat of herbaceous vegetation. So it 
 will be seen that I only propose to discuss what may be 
 called the fertile prairies, laying entirely out of view 
 those arid deserts formed in many portions of the globe 
 where rains are so seldom that few varieties of the vege- 
 table kingdom can exist without artificial irrigation. 
 
 My attention has been lately recalled to this subject by 
 the re-perusal of a paper prepared by Professor Leo Las- 
 quereoux for the Report of the Geological Survey of Illi- 
 nois, and published in that Report, Vol. 1, page 238. 
 Hence has it become the property of our State, and in- 
 vites the criticism of all her citizens, thousands of whom 
 
 <^ 
 
. Origin of the Prairies. 
 
 have devoted much study to the subject, with better means 
 of understanding it than is possible to one whose observa- 
 tions are confined to a mere superficial exammatum of 
 them, as was evidently the case with the learned author 
 of this paper, as I think I shall show before I conclude 
 although I attempt it with the greatest deference and 
 respect for such high authority. ^ , • ^ 
 
 The theory of the learned Professor may be briefly 
 stated thus : Prairies were originally formed in the shal- 
 low margins of agitated waters, either lakes or runmng 
 streams. By the agitation uf the waters ot lakes dnft.ng 
 material is thrown up at a greater or less distance from 
 the shores, forming dams or dykes, which serve to cut off 
 si allow sections of water from the main body. These 
 shallow r.onds of water, being protected from the agita- 
 tions of" the main body, become the habitat of aquatic 
 plants, which in successive crops decay and are reproduced 
 thus contributing to fill up the shallow pools which end 
 is also promoted by atmospheric deposits and the growth 
 and decay of animal aquatic life, until finally the bottom 
 of the pent up waters is raised above the surface and a 
 prairie is formed. The same process is repeated a ong 
 the margins of rivers, where similar deposits are made in 
 the still waters on either side of the active current, which 
 cuts off sections of shallow water into quiet ponds along 
 the river bottoms, which become filled up and are con- 
 verted into prairies in the same way. The paper says : 
 "This peculiarity of formation explains, first, the pecuhar 
 nature of the soil of the prairies. It is neither peat nor 
 humns, but a black, soft mould, impregmted with a large 
 proportion of ulmic acid, produced by the slow decompo- 
 sition, mostly under water, of aquatic plants, and thus 
 partaking as much of the nature of peat as true humus. 
 In all the depressions of the prairies, where water is per- 
 
 f 
 
 1 
 
 -»»— W-*^li*«<»lSl^! 
 
Origin of the Pniiries. 
 
 <; 
 
 means 
 (serva- 
 ion of 
 author 
 iclude, 
 ;e and 
 
 briefly 
 e shal- 
 unning 
 drifting 
 :e from 
 
 cut off 
 
 These 
 e agita- 
 aquatic 
 oduced, 
 ich end 
 
 growth 
 
 bottom 
 t, and a 
 :d along 
 made in 
 It, which 
 ds along 
 
 are con- 
 per says : 
 2 peculiar 
 
 peat ilor 
 ith a large 
 decompo- 
 
 and thus 
 le humus, 
 ter is per- 
 
 Ji 
 
 manent and unmixed with mineral matter, the ground is 
 true peat. It is easy to understand why trees cannot grow 
 on such kind of ground." 
 
 Now, the first criticism which the consideration of this 
 theory invites is, that it assumes that all prairie soils 
 are of the same character and constituents, and hence the 
 conclusion that they were all formed in the same way and 
 are alike unfitted to the growth of trees. 
 
 All familiar with the prairies, even the most superficial 
 observers, know that this is not the case. There is almost, 
 if not quite, as great a variety of prairie soils as of wood- 
 land soils. Scarcely one acre in the thousand of the great 
 prairies of Illinois and Iowa would be recognised by this 
 description. Peat bogs, as described by our author, are 
 frequently met with, and sometimes bordering them the 
 kind of soil he describes where ponds have been filled up 
 and converted into marshes, and these, by a continuance 
 of the same process, have finally become dry prairies; but 
 a. very large proportion of our dry prairies abound in true 
 humus, while many are scantily furnished with vegetable 
 matter. Such is the character of all our sandy prairies, a 
 striking example of which is found near Pekin, in this 
 State, stretching clear away to the banks of the Mackinaw, 
 and even beyond it. Of the same character, also, are the 
 prairies at Peoria, at Chillicothe, at Lacon, at Hennepin, 
 and at Henry, and twenty others which I could name in 
 Illinois. This soil is as permeable to the atmosphere, is 
 as accessible to oxygen as any soil capable of sustaining 
 vegetable life. 
 
 Surely these prairies are not treeless because the seeds 
 of arborescent plants deposited on or in them are not ac- 
 cessible to the oxygen necessary to their development, 
 which is, in fact, the only reason which the writer assigns 
 for the absence of trees on the prairies. He says, imme- 
 
 ^ah^dt a Wfa " ^ 
 
 ?"1 
 
6 Origin of the Vrairics. 
 
 diutely after my last quotation : " The germitj^ition of 
 seeds of arborescent plants needs the iree access of oxygen 
 for its developments, and the trees, especially m their 
 youth, absorb by their roots a great amount of air, and 
 demand a solid point of attachment to t^x themselves. 
 Moreover, the acid of this, by its particularly antiseptic 
 properties, promotes the vegetation of a pecuhar group 
 of plants principally herbaceous." The truth is, all the 
 vegetation found on the high prairies requires the accessi- 
 bility of oxygen to its roots for its proper nutrition— nay, 
 its vitality. Transfer the grasses on the rolling prames 
 into the swamps, or even the humid S(nl of the swales, 
 and they will die as if burned with fire. The vegetation 
 upon the prairies changes as they become dryer, no mat- 
 ter from what cause. Artificial draining produces this 
 effect with appreciable rapidity. This, no doubt, is not 
 entirely owing to the absence of stagnant water m the 
 soil but also to the absence of certain salts, which have 
 been washed out by affording a passage to the water per- 
 colating through the soil. Although I cannot assert from 
 actual analysis that this change takes place in the constit- 
 uents of the soil by the process of draining, I think it is 
 not a hazardous conjecture to ^.appose so, nor is it more 
 unreasonable to suppose that the pores left vacant by 
 draining off the water are directly filled by air, and so is 
 the soil at once supplied with an abundance ot oxygen 
 necessary to the vitality of a new class of vegetation, 
 which succeeds the old. The difference in the vegetation 
 found on the different prairies, or on different parts ot the 
 same prairie, testifies to the different constituents m their 
 soils. So soon as the soil is raised above the water, atmos- 
 pheric air will penetrate it, more and more, in almost the 
 exact ratio that it becomes drier. Both mechanical and 
 chemical changes are thence continually going on, and so 
 
 ^' 
 
tion of 
 oxygen 
 n their 
 lir, and 
 nselves. 
 itiseptic 
 r group 
 all the 
 accessi- 
 in — nay, 
 prairies 
 z swales, 
 getation 
 no mat- 
 jces this 
 t, is not 
 :r in the 
 ich have 
 ater per- 
 sert from 
 e constit- 
 link it is 
 is it more 
 /acant by 
 and so is 
 (f oxygen 
 egetation, 
 vegetation 
 arts of the 
 :s in their 
 :er, atmos- 
 ilmost the 
 anical and 
 on, and so 
 
 Origin of the Vrairics.- 7 
 
 are the constituents of the soil continually changing, and 
 so does the character of the vegetation found upon them 
 change, so that the soil will always be covered with some 
 class of vegetation, to which it is adapted. But it does 
 not follow that all the kinds of vegetation which tlie soil 
 is adapted to sustain, will be found there. Indeed, but a 
 very few may be looked for. The selection of those that 
 are foimd and the exchision of those absent, are deter- 
 mined by causes quite independent of the constituents ot 
 the soil. They are dependent upon accidental causes. 
 
 The theory under consideration also assumes that the 
 subsoil of the prairies is uniformly clay. A more inti- 
 mate acquaintance with the prairies woidd have corrected 
 this misapprehension. The super-soil of the prairies some- 
 times rests upon gravel and sometimes upon rock, and 
 sometimes this gravel subsoil, at a greater or less depth, 
 rests upon either a stratum of clay or upon rock. An 
 example of the former may be found on the east side of 
 the Du Page river, above Flainfield, in this State, — where 
 we have the exceptional case of the entire absence of tim- 
 ber along the borders of a considerable river for many 
 miles,— and ift many places along the Fox river. Also, 
 near Lisbon and at Joliet, we find the soil resting upon 
 rock, with no clay interposed. Near Lisbon, particular- 
 ly, this is found on the high, rolling prairie, far away from 
 the river bottoms and from timber. I might cite many 
 similar examples, but it is unnecessary. The vegetation 
 covering all these, wh i not controlled by the humidity 
 of the soil, is substantially the same, but neither the sur- 
 face or the subsoil has in general anything to do with ab- 
 sence of arborescent vegetation. 
 
 That the prairies— that is, the land itself— have been 
 formed under water, except the very limited portion of 
 the surface which has been added from decomposed ani- 
 
 II 
 
 -I mvmiii& , 
 

 8 Qr/gm of the Frairies. 
 
 mal and vegetable matter since their emergence, will not 
 be questioned by any one of the least observation; but 
 that is not the main question involved in the present in- 
 quiry. Why are they not covered with forests ? It is 
 the cause of this feature which Prof Lesquereaux under- 
 takes to explain. His theory of the territorial formation 
 is introduced solely for the purpose of explaining this 
 phenomenon, and which it tails to explain, at least to my 
 
 satisfaction. 
 
 If the Grand Prairie of Illinois was formed under 
 water, from which it emerged by a slow process of eleva- 
 tion or by a subsidence of the waters, a theory to which 
 I am prepared to assent, or if it was formed piecemeal 
 by having one section of shallow water, and then another, 
 cut off from the main body by the accumulation of de- 
 posits by the agitated waters, as described in the theory 
 under consideration, then the lands now covered by the 
 immense forests lying nortU and east of us, in Wisconsin, 
 Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, and of the same general 
 altitude, were formed in the same way; and if this pro- 
 cess of formation is the true cause why trees are not found 
 on our prairies, then the same cause should have produced 
 the same effect there. But more, if this theory be correct, 
 then the latest formations of land should be nearest the 
 great bodies of water from which they have been de- 
 tached, and less congenial to the growth of trees, and we 
 should expect to find the forests most remote from the 
 waters. Now the very reverse of this is found, in fact, to 
 be the case. At one single point alone does the Grand 
 Prairie abut on Lake Michigan, and that for the short 
 distance of four miles south of the mouth of the Chicago 
 river. The great forests of Indiana are in the north part 
 of that State, and we must go south of those forests to 
 find her large and luxuriant prairies. In Northwestern 
 
 
 'ss 
 
 - -iirimmii'irtBlfciii 
 
Or /gin of the Prair/CT. 
 
 n\\\ not 
 an; but 
 sent in- 
 ! It is 
 under- 
 rmation 
 ing this 
 t to my 
 
 i under 
 f eleva- 
 3 which 
 ecemeal 
 another, 
 1 of de- 
 e theory 
 1 by the 
 isconsin, 
 general 
 this pro- 
 lot found 
 Droduced 
 e correct, 
 arest the 
 been de- 
 ;, and we 
 from the 
 n fact, to 
 le Grand 
 the short 
 = Chicago 
 lorth part 
 forests to 
 thwestern 
 
 i 
 
 Indiana we find those large swamps, which may have 
 been cut off from tht waters of the lakes in the manner 
 supposed by Prof Lesquereaux, and which are now in 
 the process of being filled up ; but it is a remarkable and 
 interesting fact, that wherever a point, no matter how 
 small, in any of these great marshe?, has been riised above 
 high water, it is covered with trees. No traveler can pass 
 over the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railroad, 
 for instance, without having his attention arrested by the 
 innumerable islands, all covered with trees, rising every- 
 where out of this great marsh, all with surfaces but a 
 very few feet above the water. If he has ever passed 
 down the St. Lawrence, among the Thousand Islands, he 
 is at once reminded of the fact by the similarity of the 
 relative location, size and number of the islands. I have 
 in vain sought among these marshes for a dry place de- 
 void of trees, except on the dykes themselves, portions of 
 which may be found quite destitute of any vegetation, 
 where the dry sand will afford sustenance to none. 
 
 That these marshes once formed a portion of the 
 body of the lake, and have been cut off from it by dykes 
 thrown up by agitated waters, may be true. Indeed, 
 these dykes are as readily traced to-day as are the shores 
 of the lake or the borders of the marshes themselves; but 
 they are not uniformly overgrown with trees, as is sup- 
 posed by the author of the theory under consideration. 
 More than thirty-five years ago I examined one of the 
 most remarkable of these ridges, south of where the vil- 
 lage of Thornton now stands. It is composed principally 
 of compact gravels, as straight as possible, nearly north 
 and south; I should think, perhaps three hundred feet 
 wide, and elevated, probably, ten feet above the marshes 
 on each side. ^It is as regular in its grade as if thrown 
 up by the hand of man, under the direction of a skillful 
 
 1 
 
r 
 
 lO 
 
 I 
 
 M 
 
 S 
 
 i 
 
 % 
 
 Origin of the Pmirics. 
 
 I ever saw, and, I undersuna, evidence 
 
 4 Knt a tee was standing on it, nor the eviocn 
 S^Hrh:d^v« been one Thc^s.U-.,gh,,b. 
 
 „.r:Ls to *e - Wg -fo. . e «.e. ,o he 
 
 tion of men to another, ' .-«P' ^''/^^rlpposed 
 the formation of some pra.nes '" '^T^^ j^l^„,, 
 
 "pLr 2: eVect of the ehem.aUna rne.amcaUot,on 
 
 of the ''-.^^ J™,l:d by g»losica. time, in which 
 a short period, as ««""'=" 7 *: . °,j, „, appreciable 
 
 ,he life of ™" Xe^^nte h^rric pSs sca^'ly long 
 
 """"Xfortsing e ;rh. Although, geologically speak- 
 enough for a smgle or ^.^^^ ^^^^^ 
 
 ing, we can consider *.s a new ju y, 5 ^^^^^^^_ ^^ 
 
 *- YTwiir::; t: '^'s:z^^^^ *e w^er. .o 
 
 rather, 1 will say, were ^^^ _^^^ _ 
 
 add to them «'™*'"g:^' ''^^;'i„g ;„ the atmosphere, 
 ble deposits and ?»"-'« ™ ^e this accumula- 
 
 ttp::rrh:tl":c^-----tr^"™" 
 
 ndustrv where civilization directs its energies. 
 Throiilh the changes of accumulating ages, the soils of 
 
 ■iiinatorii^*iin>Wtii. 
 
I drive 
 
 public 
 
 vidence 
 
 ^ht, but 
 
 yke cut 
 > to the 
 ilar pro- 
 nturc to 
 at on the 
 r slow is 
 fter they 
 
 animals, 
 f grass — 
 e genera- 
 idence of 
 supposed 
 
 destitute 
 iently ap- 
 cal action 
 IS even in 
 , in which 
 ppreciable 
 ircely long 
 ally speak- 
 ne enough 
 elevated, or 
 ; waters, to 
 ind vegeta- 
 itmosphere, 
 j accumula- 
 
 by human 
 
 , the soils of 
 
 Or/'gin of the Prairie. 
 
 s. \ 
 
 11 
 
 our prairies and woodlands have no doubt, at different 
 times, been adapted to the healthy growth of almost every 
 variety of vegetation of the temperat- zone, both herba- 
 ceous and arborescent, nor do I think it unreasonable to 
 suppose that not only our present prairies, but the great 
 forest land covering the plains which spread away clear to 
 the foot of the mountains east of us, may have been many 
 times clothed with heavy forests, and these again denuded 
 to naked prairies. It is a familiar fact, that places have 
 been found covered with what appeared a primeval forest 
 of hard wood, showing abundant remains of a growth of 
 pine, which must once have occupied the same place. 
 No fact is better settled in agricultural science, than that 
 any particular crop of vegetation, if long continued, will 
 in time exhaust the element necessary to its vigorous 
 growth, when, if vegetation requiring a different element 
 be substituted, it will grow with peculiar luxuriance. 
 Hence the necessity for rotation of crops, which has been 
 thus enforced by the laws of nature herself long before 
 man appreciated its utility or adopted it in practice. 
 
 When the vegetation is not taken from the ground, but 
 is allowed to return to it, the process of exhaustion is, no 
 doubt, retarded to a certain extent, but is not entirely ar- 
 rested, and hence we see this rotation of crops wrought 
 out by the hand of nature itself, ahhough at longer inter- 
 vals than is required for the husbandman. 
 
 I entirely concur in the popular opinion, that among 
 the most important of the causes which have produced 
 this interesting result is fire, while the exhaustion and re- 
 plenishing the soil with particular elements have, no 
 doubt, had their influence. 
 
 The opinions of the first settlers on the prairies, who 
 ftre often good observers of many phenomena, are entitled 
 to respect, and, so far as I am aware, they universally at- 
 
 m 
 
I 
 
 I 
 
 1 2 Origin of tie Prairies. 
 
 tribute the absence of trees from the prairies to the peri- 
 odical fires which swept over them, overlooking, no doubt, 
 many minor causes. The hard, impenetrable character of 
 the sward, formed by most of the herbaceous vegetation 
 of the prairies, forms a serious impediment to the germi- 
 nation of seeds of trees, when, by accident, they fall upon 
 it. It is not the composition of the soil that prevents the 
 germination of this class of seeds, but whatever difficulty 
 is experienced in this regard arises from the mechani- 
 cal cause above suggested. The herbaceous vegetation 
 which covers the prairies is furnished with an immense 
 number of very strong roots,— far more so than any of 
 the tame or cultivated grasses. In general, these form a 
 complete mat on the surface and penetrate to a great 
 depth. They are often met with of a considerable size 
 a? a depth of six or eight feet. The extraordinary system 
 of capillary roots with which they are furnished enables 
 them to remain green and vigorous during the long 
 drouths, which much more frequently occur on the prai- 
 ries than in the timbered lands and in mountainous coun- 
 tries, during which the cultivated grasses, and even the 
 clover, with its long tap-roots, greatly suffer. These long 
 drouths, no doubt, also exert their influence to prevent the 
 germination of arborescent seeds on the prairies, or to de- 
 stroy the young plants, or, at least, to prepare them for 
 certain destruction when the autumnal fires shall sweep 
 over them. 
 
 It is a familiar fact to all careful observers that fire is 
 much more destructive to the vitality of arborescent than 
 to herbaceous plants, cateris paribus. A fire that will 
 destroy the last vestige of life in a tree of considerable 
 size will leave the roots of the grasses surrounding it un- 
 harmed, from which will spring a more luxuriant growth 
 the succeeding season. Indeed, it is a most interesting 
 
 
 ^% 
 
 
the peri- 
 o doubt, 
 racter of 
 igetation 
 2 geriTii- 
 fall upon 
 /ents the 
 lifficulty 
 nechani- 
 ^getation 
 immense 
 ,n any of 
 form a 
 a great 
 able size 
 •y system 
 i enables 
 the long 
 the prai- 
 )us coun- 
 even the 
 hese long 
 event the 
 or to cie- 
 them for 
 all sweep 
 
 lat fire is 
 icent than 
 that will 
 isiderable 
 ing it un- 
 it growth 
 nteresting 
 
 I 
 
 Origin of the Prairies, 13 
 
 fact, familiar to all the early settlers, who depended upon 
 the prairie grasses for pasturage and for hay, that a much 
 more luxuriant growth is produced on the prairies where 
 the old grass is burned off than where it is allowed to re- 
 main and decay upon the ground. I have in person often 
 made careful observations on this subject, and uniformly 
 with the same result. The farmer does not burn off the 
 old grass in the fall solely that it may not obstruct the 
 scythe when mowing the next year's crop, but the most 
 casual observation will show one that the actual growth 
 of grass is ordinarily at least one-third greater where the 
 old grass has been burned off in the fall. I shall not stop 
 now to explain why this is so, although I think it suscep- 
 tible of a most satisflictory solution, but at present content 
 myself with the fact that the roots of the prairie herbage 
 are not injured by a very considerable degree of heat 
 where even large trees would be liable to be destroyed. 
 What, then, must be the fate of the tree of but a few 
 months' growth ? Utter annihilation seems absolutely in- 
 evitable. So long as the prairies are subject to the annu- 
 al conflagrations, to which they are so much exposed in a 
 state of nature, there is a manifest cause .^/ trees get a 
 lodgement on them with so much difficulty. 
 
 While I will make no question with Prof Lesquereaux 
 as to the process by which the marshes or swamps in the 
 vicinity of some of our lakes and rivers have been formed, 
 or the reasons why trees do not groM in them, conceding 
 that perpetual stagnant water is destructive of arboraceous 
 vitality, the error, I conceive, consists in carrying the 
 proposition too far, and applying it where the existing 
 conditions render it ia-^pplicable,— in extending it from 
 the marshes perpetually covered with water to the high, 
 rolling prairies, where none of the conditions exist which 
 prevent the growth of trees in the stagnant waters of the 
 
I 
 
 I 
 
 1' 
 
 I; 
 
 jj_ 0/7^;/// ^y' flct' Prairies. 
 
 marshes. The cause of the absence of trees on the up- 
 land prairies is the problem most important to the agn- 
 culiural interests of our State, and it is the inquiry which 
 alone I propose to consider, but I cannot resist the remark 
 that wherever we do find timber throughout this broad 
 field of prairie, it is always in or near the humid portions 
 of it,— as along the margins of streams, or upon or near 
 the s'pringey uplands. Many most luxuriant groves are 
 found on the highest portions of the uplands, but always 
 in the neighborhood of water. For a remarkable exam- 
 ple I may refer to that great chain of groves, extcndmg 
 from and including the Au Sable Grove on the east and 
 Holderman's Grove on the west, in Kendall county, 
 occupying the high divide between the waters of the Illi- 
 nois and the Fox rivers. In and around all the groves 
 flowing springs abound, and some of them are separated 
 by mushes, to the very borders of which the great trees 
 approach, as If the forest were ready to seize upon each 
 yard of ground as soon as it is elevated above the swamps. 
 Indeed, all our groves seem to be located where water is 
 so disposed as to protect them, to a greater or less extent, 
 from the prairie fire, although not so situated as to irrigate 
 them. If the head waters of the streams on the prairies 
 are most frequently without timber, so soon as they have 
 attained sufficient volume to impede the progress of the 
 fires, with very few exceptions, we find forests on their 
 borders, becoming broader and more vigorous as the mag- 
 nitude of the streams increases. It is manifest that lands lo- 
 Gated on the bordersof stieams which the fires cannot piss 
 are only exposed to one-half the fires to which they would 
 be exposed but for such protection. This tends to show 
 at least, that if but one-half the fires that have occurred 
 had been kindled, the arboraceous growth could have 
 withstood their destructive influence, and the whole sur- 
 
 
Origin of the Prairies. 
 
 »5' 
 
 he up- 
 e agri- 
 ■ which 
 remark 
 ? broad 
 )()rtions 
 or near 
 ves are 
 
 always 
 : exam- 
 tending 
 ast and 
 county, 
 the Illi- 
 : groves 
 i^parated 
 ^at trees 
 on each 
 swamps, 
 water is 
 s extent, 
 3 irrigate 
 
 prairies 
 ley have 
 js of the 
 
 on their 
 the mag- 
 : lands lo- 
 nnot piss 
 ey would 
 
 to show, 
 
 occurred 
 uld have 
 hole sur- 
 
 face of what is now prairie would te forest. Ar Jthv^r 
 confirmatory fact, patent to all observers, is, that the pre- 
 vailing winds upon the prairies, especially in the autumn, 
 are from the west, and these give direction to the prairie 
 fires. Consequently, the lands on the westerly sides of 
 the streams are the most exposed to the fires, and, as 
 might be expected, we find much the most timber on the 
 easterly sides of the streams. 
 
 Another fact, always a subject of remark among the 
 dwellers on the prairies, I regard as conclusive evidence 
 that the prairie soils are peculiarly adapted to the growth 
 of trees is, that wherever the fires have been kept from 
 the groves by the settlers, they have rapidly encroached 
 upon the prairies, unless closely depastured by the larm- 
 er's stock or prevented by cultivation. This fact I regard 
 as established by careful observation of more than thirty- 
 five years, during which I have been an interested witness 
 of the settlement of this country, — from the time when a 
 few log cabins, many miles apart, built in the borders of 
 the groves, alone were met with, till now nearly the 
 whole of the great prairies, in our State at least, are brought 
 under cultivation by the industry of the husbandman. 
 Indeed, this is a fact as well recognised by the settlers as 
 that corn will grow upon the prairies when properly cul- 
 tivated. Ten yeais ago I heard the observation made, by 
 intelligent and observing men, that within the preceding 
 twenty-five years the area of the timber in the prairie por- 
 tions of the State had actually doubled by the spontaneous 
 extension of the natural groves. However this may be, 
 certain it is that the encroachments of the timber upon 
 the prairies have been universal and rapid, wherever not 
 impeded by fire or other physical causes, without regard 
 to the constituents of the soil. 
 
 The manner and progress of the encroachments are 
 
 ., ^' 
 
i6 
 
 Origin of the Pniiries. 
 
 familiar to all. The hazel is the usual pioneer in these 
 encroachments, though sometimes even this is preceded 
 by the wild apple. No one can at this day travel i:wo 
 hours on any of the railroads through our prairies without 
 passing some grove of timber bordered by considerable 
 belts of hazel, among which, not far from the outer edge, 
 young forest trees will appear, and these will be observed 
 larger and larger as they are farther and farther from the 
 edge of the grass, and are found nearer and nearer the 
 original forest, and this where there has been no cultiva- 
 vation. This is the usual though not universal appear- 
 ance of the surroundings of the groves at the present day. 
 Sometimes, no doubt, large trees will be found as advance 
 sentinels, standing out quite in the prairie, but how they 
 have been able to maintain their ground there we may 
 not at all times be able to explain. Such instances are 
 rare exceptions. The general rule is, that the hazel is in 
 the advance, and from this we may safely conclude that 
 this shrub can maintain the struggle for life with the prai- 
 rie grass better than forest trees, while in turn it suc- 
 cumbs to the latter. In the hazel rough the seeds 
 of the trees find an accessible soil, where the young 
 plants are indifferent to or are benefited by the shade. In 
 time they rise above the hazel, and at length grow to suf- 
 ficient size to constitute a forest, and shade the ground, 
 which destroys the hazel, which was their protecting nurse 
 in infancy. The facts stated, I think, dearly warrant the 
 conclusion drawn. 
 
 In the paper under consideration the author, in answer 
 to some, I think, well considered remarks of Prof. Win- 
 chell, says : " The second assertion, that trees will grffiv 
 on the prairies when introduced or planted, is certainly true. 
 But we should take care to make a distinction between 
 the results of an artificial process and a natural one. 
 
 , 
 
Or/(rin of the Pni/r/cs. 
 
 ^7 
 
 r in these 
 
 preceded 
 travel i:wo 
 es without 
 msidemble 
 juter edge, 
 e observed 
 
 from the 
 nearer the 
 lo culti va- 
 sal appear- 
 tresent day. 
 as advance 
 
 how they 
 re we may 
 stances are 
 
 hazel is in 
 nclude that 
 ith the prai- 
 tum it suc- 
 
 the seeds 
 the young 
 t shade. In 
 ;row to suf- 
 the ground, 
 ecting nurse 
 warrant the 
 
 r, in answer 
 Prof. Win- 
 ?s Will grow 
 ^rtainly true, 
 ion between 
 natural one. 
 
 When trees are planned on the prairie the soil is conve- 
 niently prepared. The clayey subsoil mixed with the 
 black mould forms a compound which combines density 
 of certain parts with lightness of others, and contains a 
 great proportion of nutritive elements. If the clay of 
 the subsoil is not too thick to be impermeable to water, 
 and thus to retain it around the roots, this prepared or artifi- 
 cial ground is very appropriate to the growth of trees. 
 But has ever anybody seen oaks or hickories, or any other 
 kind of tr s, grow in the prairies from a bushel of acoms 
 or of nuts thrown upon their surface ? Why, then, if 
 trees will grow on the prairies, do we not see those isolated 
 and far-between clusters of trees which appear here and 
 there on th»? borders of ancient lakes cover a wider area 
 and by and by invade the whole prairies? Some of those 
 trees have lived there for ages, their trunks are strong and 
 thick, and their branches, widely expanded, are shaken 
 and their fruits swept away by the impetuosity of the 
 autumnal storms; and, nevertheless, their domain is re- 
 stricted by the nature of the groimd to limits which they 
 have never surpassed." 
 
 Now, the observations already stated, and about which 
 I cannot be mistaken, and in support of which thousands 
 of witnesses who have dwelt upon the prairies for many 
 years, and have been in the constant habit of observing 
 the various phenomena which they present, can be met 
 with everywhere in this prairie country, fully answer the 
 suggestions contained in the full extract which I have 
 made. Arboreous seeds when thrown upon the unbroken 
 prairie do germinate and grow to trees, b»it with difficulty, 
 no doubt, on account of the sward on which they fall, 
 and the great danger to which tliey are exposed, especial- 
 ly from fires. Where they have no protection from these 
 their destruction is almost certain, no matter how readily 
 
 mMa 
 
W-.'*^J**l-T«(i»W»TC;f».-'-iVO»r^«»-X.'»V^p»«iyK , 
 
 i8 
 
 Origin of tlw Vran-ics 
 
 ! , 
 
 the seed may germinate or how vigorously the young 
 plants may grow. It does not require the cultivation of 
 the soil, the mixing of the clayey subsoil with the black 
 mould of the surface, to insure the successful growth of 
 trees upon the prairies. Indeed, I have already shown 
 that not all the prairies have a clayey subsoil, and, as is 
 elsewhere shown in the paper under consideration, in but 
 few instances does the clay approach the surtace to within 
 the reach of the plow. The whole theory under consid- 
 eration is based on the fatal error that the prairie soils are 
 not adapted to the growth oi trees. I do not speak from 
 mere conjecture, but from carefully observed and well at- 
 tested facts, when I say that the exact reverse is the case. 
 We have, then, obvious reasons why the scattered clus- 
 ters of trees referred to, the isolated groves upon the prai- 
 ries, have not extended their domain so as to embrace the 
 whole field. The prairie fires, the matted, tough sward, 
 the grazing of uild animals in the neighborhood of the 
 groves to which they resorted, the aboriginal encampments 
 usually located around the borders of the groves, would 
 seem to present a sufficient explanation why the groves 
 have not extended, independently of the quality of the 
 soil. That the cultivation of the prairie soils improves 
 their condition for the growth of trees is proved by the 
 more vigorous growth of those where the ground is culti- 
 vated than those which spring from seeds accidentally 
 scattered on the prairie along the borders of the groves ; 
 but this is true of herbaceous vegetation as well. 
 
 Who that is intimately acquainted with and has care- 
 fully studied the prairies will dispute that the soil of the 
 groves has been formed by the same process that his 
 formed the soil of the treeless prairies ? The theory that 
 these groves mark out the places where the agitated waters 
 have thrown up embankments, which cut otF the shallow 
 
 -*"Sr«ytr*:'»-i=j5Biros!««wt*is 
 
Orighi of the Viairks. 
 
 19 
 
 the young 
 tivation of 
 
 the black 
 
 gro^vth of 
 itly shown 
 
 anil, as is 
 ion, in but 
 :e to within 
 der consici- 
 rie soils are 
 speak from 
 ,nd wrll at- 
 is the case, 
 ittered clus- 
 on the prai- 
 smbrace the 
 jugh sward, 
 lood of the 
 icampments 
 )ves, would 
 
 the groves 
 lality of the 
 lis improves 
 >ved by the 
 and is culti- 
 acci dentally 
 the groves; 
 rell. 
 
 id has care- 
 : soil of the 
 ;ess that his 
 e theory that 
 ;itated waters 
 
 the shallow 
 
 waters where the naked prairies have been formed, is not 
 sustained by either the topography or the geogniphy of 
 the ground. If this theory were true we should find the 
 groves in continuous lines, upon elevated ridges, com- 
 posed of sand and gravel, such as we uniformly find to 
 comprise those dykes, which, undoubtedly, have been 
 formed as supposed, and have performed the office assigned 
 them. Such, however, is not the case. In very few in- 
 stances do we find the groves occupying continuous, un- 
 broken ridges of any considerable extent. We find them 
 scattered over the prairies, without law or order, excepting 
 only the condition of water in some form in their vicinity, 
 which may serve to protect them from the conflagrations 
 of the prairies. This water need not charge the soil itself 
 with humidity in order to secure the growth of trees, for 
 it is not uncommon to find the groves occupying the 
 highest and dryest knolls, but at their feet, or at least so 
 near as to serve as a protection, water is sure to be found. 
 In former times, when the traveler, in crossing the great, 
 wild prairies, saw a grove in the distance, he shaped his 
 course to it, with the absolute certainty of finding water 
 there, no matter how dry or parched the prairie might be. 
 
 The soil, too, gives no evidence of an accumulation of 
 material, such as is usually thrown up by agitated waters. 
 When we penetrate the soil of the woodlands, even to 
 great depths, as in digging wells, and the like, we find the 
 same formations which are met with in the surrounding 
 prairies. I have already alluded to the fact that whenever 
 we find a chain of groves occupyir:g the high divides of 
 the water sheds of the prairies, they are generally separa- 
 ted by deep depressions, which would have destroyed 
 them as dykes for the separation of the waters. 
 
 As I have already stated, I am prepared to admit, as 
 almost a demonstrated fact, that not only our great prai- 
 
 wm^ 
 
 mimm 
 
] 
 
 20 
 
 Or /'gin of the Pnu'r/es. 
 
 ries, but also our great forest lands and the desert plains, 
 filling all the space between the Allcghenies and the 
 Rocky Mountains, were originally formed or deposited 
 under water, from which they have emerged by some pro- 
 cess of nature, probably very slow ; but this elevation has 
 not been dependent, to any considerable degree, upon ad- 
 ditional deposits, but upon the actual upheavel of the mass 
 of matter originally submerged, or the subsidence of the 
 waters by the removal of barriers which once restrained 
 them. And yet, if all prairies have been formed as sup- 
 posed by the theory wh?h I have taken the liberty of 
 criticising, they have bee, formed by deposits in the wa- 
 ter till, by successive accumulations, they have finally 
 emerged above the waters. 
 
 To me the evidence that this is not so is absolutely 
 conclusive, as well as that the deposits have been very 
 insignificant, since they were deeply buried under the 
 waters. I will state some of the facts, within the observa- 
 tion of all men, which have led me to this conclusion. 
 
 I think it is universally accepted, at least among scien- 
 tific men, that the rocks (called boulders) scattered over 
 most of our prairies, at least east of the Missouri river 
 and north of latitude forty, have been transported from 
 their original beds in the north to their present places by 
 means of floating ice. Apart from the admitted fact that 
 this is not their native place, or t//at they did not grow hcre^ 
 and hence must have been transported by some agency, 
 and of our absolute inability to conceive of any other ca- 
 pable of producing such results, many of the masses, es- 
 pecially in the Iowa prairies, weighing hundreds of tons 
 each, and the additional fact that their rounded form has 
 been acquired by abrasion, by which their sharp angles 
 have been worn away since they were detached from their 
 original beds, and we can conceive of no other adequate 
 
 BMfeSK 1 !.WW-S^-i.s:?^9(B*!je«W j«ift'S»-'*»ffi<a(B0.W«aK'!e*M**3*W^^ 
 
lesert plains, 
 nics and the 
 or deposited 
 by some pro- 
 elevation has 
 ee, upon ad- 
 :1 of the mass 
 lence of the 
 ce restrained 
 rmed as sup- 
 he liberty of 
 ts in the wa- 
 havc finally 
 
 is absolutely 
 e been very 
 d under the 
 I the observa- 
 onclusion. 
 imong scien- 
 :attered over 
 lissouri river 
 sported from 
 nt places by 
 itted fact that 
 not grow here, 
 ;ome agency, 
 any other ca- 
 e masses, es- 
 Ireds of tons 
 led form has 
 sharp angles 
 led from their 
 her adequate 
 
 Origin of the Vrciiric!. 
 
 21 
 
 agency to produce this result but moving water and ice, — 
 I say, aside from all this evidence, within two miles of 
 where I now write, the most convincing evidence exists 
 that these boulders were brought by icebergs. To the 
 north, but more especially to the west, of the city of 
 Ottawa, and almost within its limits, it is easy to trace the 
 exact size and form of the masses <jf ice, where they 
 giv^'mded and deposited their freight of boulders. There 
 one may walk over a quarter of an acre, a half an acre, 
 or several acres, according to the size of the mass, always 
 stepping on these stones, thus deposited close together as 
 they were when embraced by the congealing waters, and 
 outside of the borders not a single stone can be found till 
 another similar collection is met with. The borders of 
 these collections are as sharply defined as if marked with 
 a wall. Here, too, another interesting fact may be ob- 
 served, which shows that they were not transported in one 
 voyage from their original homes to their present resting 
 place. We observe a single collection composed of a 
 great variety of rocks — several kinds of granite, trap 
 gneiss, siehite, and perhaps a dozen others, which we 
 know, from their far distant beds, had been drifted or 
 rolled together from long distances, and worn to their 
 present form, before they were picked up for their last 
 voyage. 
 
 The rock-bound shores of Lake Superior show us how 
 these boulders were formed. There, in many places, we 
 may see before us the lately detached blocks of rock, 
 with all their angles sharp, and, as we pass down from the 
 top of the cliff over the broken masses to the very edge 
 of the water, and even look beneath it, we find the angles 
 of the blocks more and more worn, and the masses them- 
 selves smaller, till at last, when we reach the water and 
 look into it, we see before us the smooth, rounded bould- 
 
 ^^ 
 
 mmtm 
 
n 
 
 ^ ,.jut^-:^Sf?^->^-'i^^3fy^^e!mSiC£ai^eSl0^^^n^'timvi' 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 
 't 
 
 \i 
 
 22 Or/g?n of the Pniir/cs. 
 
 ers as we see them on our prairies; and if we will stard 
 tliere when a heavy sea is rolling in, we shall see the great 
 blocks of stone jostled together and the process of abrasion 
 going on before our eyes. It may take a thousand great 
 storms to wear away ...n ounce from a single block, yet 
 enough millions of such storms will at last do the work, 
 and that etfectually. Perhaps the most accessible pomt 
 where this manufacturing of boulders can be witnessed is 
 on the mainland west of Partridge Island, a tew miles 
 above Marquette. 1 cannot forbear to mention one other 
 interesting evidence of the transportation of these prairie 
 boulders. A few miles south of Waterloo, in Black 
 Hawk county, Iowa, is the fragment of an immense 
 boulder, which must weigh many hundrm tons, showing 
 on one side a distinct face of a comparatively recent frac- 
 ture, and I was credibly informed that many miles distant 
 a similar fragment existed, with a face the counterpart of 
 this, showing that at one time both had constituted one 
 
 mass. 
 
 Now, assuming that our prairie boulders were trans- 
 ported by icebergs to their present places, and that we are, 
 in some cases at least, enabled to determine the minimum 
 sizes of the bergs which brought them, we are forced to 
 the conclusion that the prairies were covered by deep 
 waters at the time of their transportation. We may safe- 
 ly assume that ancient bergs resembled those now seen 
 floating from the frigid zones into lower latitudes, where 
 they often ground and are melted away, depositing what- 
 ever heavy material they have brought with them from 
 their starting point, which we are told by arctic navigators 
 is always at or near the shore. If this be so, we know 
 they must have required a great depth of water to float 
 them. Bergs are now frequently met with projecting 
 hundreds of feet above the water: an^. as they float with 
 
 L 
 
 ■v'iSWef r*i ■■«*•-• ' 
 
'.^<M:< , 
 
 On gin of the Pro irks. 
 
 23 
 
 will stand 
 ;e the great 
 of abrasion 
 snnd great 
 block, yet 
 the work, 
 sible point 
 vitnessed is 
 few miles 
 a one other 
 lese prairie 
 », in Black 
 1 immense 
 ns, showing 
 recent frac- 
 niles distant 
 jnterpart of 
 itituted one 
 
 were trans- 
 that we are, 
 le minimum 
 re forced to 
 ed by deep 
 Ve may safe- 
 se now seen 
 :udes, where 
 )siting what- 
 I them from 
 :ic navigators 
 io, we know 
 ^ater to float 
 :h projecting 
 ley float with 
 
 at least five-sixths of the mass under the water, we may 
 form an approximate idea of the depth of the water here 
 when these boulders were deposited. At least, we may 
 assume that it was very considerable. Had there been 
 any considerable deposit after these boulders were dropped 
 where we now see them, while they were being elevated 
 above the waters, they must have been deeply buried be- 
 neath this deposit, and we should not have this clea; evi- 
 dence, at least, of the former submergence and of the very 
 insignificant deposition during the process of elevation 
 from beneath the waters. 
 
 I claim no originality in these suggestions. I have only 
 stated what I believe to be the accepted theory by the 
 most observing and reflecting men in accounting for the 
 presence of the prairie boulders; but what I claim is, that 
 the patent facts stited are inconsistent with the theory that 
 the great body of our prairies have been built up by ac- 
 cumulations and deposits in shallow water till they were 
 raised above it, and then finally till they have attained 
 their present altitudes. I say the boulders alone absolute- 
 ly forbid this, unless they, too, were deposited in very 
 shallow water, or in most cases long after the emergence. 
 But few facts have ever been established by circumstantial 
 evidence more conclusively than this. 
 
 But even admitting the shallow pond theory as fully 
 established, and clearly showing how all the soil of the 
 prairies has been formed, and it by no means affords as 
 satisfactory a solution of the problem presented by the ab- 
 sence of trees upon the prairies as I have attempted to 
 show in a previous portion of this paper. 
 
 Indeed, we venture upon very much whenever we as- 
 sume to explain all the laws by which nature works out 
 her great results, or to state all the causes which may have 
 tended to produce this one result. One cause or set of 
 
 4 
 
24 
 
 Origin of the Prairies. 
 
 causes, if I may use the expression, may have produced 
 it in one place, and another may have oroduced it in an- 
 other place. While we may have clear proofs of the ex- 
 istence and operation of some of these causes, we may 
 not deny that others, and many of them, have been opera- 
 ting for ages on ages since the prairies became dry land, 
 first to promote the growth of one kind of vegetation 
 which by other causes has been destroyed and replaced 
 by another, and, for aught we know, this process may 
 have been many times repeated. In contemplating these 
 works of nature we are too apt to confine our reflections 
 to yesterday. When we pause, and let the mind run 
 back through the vista of time till it becomes bewildered 
 and lost in the contemplation of distance without end, we 
 are then prepared, when we return to complete conscious- 
 ness, to appreciate that the growth of the oldest tree of 
 the forest, when considered in relation to past time, has 
 been as rapid as is that of the eastern magician, who 
 plants the seed of the orange before your eyes, and while 
 you yet look the tender plant springs from the ground 
 and grows up to a full sized tree, bears blossoms, which 
 fade and fall, and the green fruit appears in their places, 
 which immediately grows to its full size, matures and 
 ripens, and you are invited to pluck and eat, and you find 
 in your hands a veritable orange, rich, juicy and nourish- 
 ing. I say this is but the history of our oldest forest 
 trees, when contemplated with reference to the ages that 
 must have elapsed since this land emerged from the bosom 
 of the waters. During all these rolling years surely there 
 has been time enough for the prairies to have been clothed 
 with forests, and again denuded of their trees, and for 
 the process to have been many times repeated, by agencies 
 not beyond our comprehension or nature's laws. But be- 
 cause this may have been, I have no warrant for saying 
 
 .- wq* -.tj r'T^p--.*^*"'" 
 
 i /js-a^ 
 
 wMi 
 
w*.-^ 
 
 ve produced 
 :ed it in an- 
 i£s of the ex- 
 ises, we may 
 e been opejra- 
 le dry land, 
 •f vegetation 
 ind replaced 
 process may 
 plating these 
 ir reflections 
 le mind run 
 s bewildered 
 bout end, we 
 te conscious- 
 Idest tree of 
 ast time, has 
 igician, who 
 ;s, and while 
 
 the ground 
 soms, which 
 their places, 
 matures and 
 and you find 
 and nourish- 
 oldest forest 
 le ages that 
 m the bosom 
 
 surely there 
 been clothed 
 ees, and for 
 
 by agencies 
 vs. But be- 
 lt for saying 
 
 Origin of the Prairies. 
 
 25 
 
 that it has been, for the want of tangible proof of the 
 feet. I may even assert its probability, or my belief that 
 it has been so, but at last it is but conjecture, and as such 
 alone may be suggested. Still we cannot shut our eyes 
 to the fact that the study of the geology of this country, in 
 some of its departments at least, is yet in its earliest in- 
 fancy. May we not reasonably hope that its maturity 
 will develop facts which will dispel the obscurity which 
 now veils many subjects of most interesting inquiry, and 
 enable us to read the past in a clearand convincing light? 
 For instance, the prairies abound in beds of peat, of great- 
 er or less extent, some of vast proportions. As yet these 
 are comparatively sealed volumes of history, which, when 
 they shall be opened and read, as they have been in what 
 we call the older countries of the world, will reveal the 
 record of bygone ages. What treasures of truths have 
 been revealed by the examinations of the peat-beds of 
 Denmark, to which reference may be made as quite ap- 
 propriate to the present inquiry ! These are of depths 
 varying only from ten to thirty feet, formed like ours, in 
 basins in the drift. They tell us, as plainly as if written 
 in a book, of the different successive forests which there 
 have lived and flourished, and finally disappeared, and 
 been succeeded by others. The oldest which they reveal 
 is the Scotch Fir, (^pinus sylvestrii,) which is not now 
 found in Denmark, and cannot even be domesticated 
 there. Then succeed several varieties of the oak, one 
 after the other, and soon, until finally at the last the beech 
 is found, which is still the common forest tree of Den- 
 mark, and so it was two thousand years ago, as we learn 
 from written history. How admirably do we here find 
 united into a long chain of history the various links 
 which we see deposited in these beds of peat, the last of 
 which, being united with and interpreted by written histo- 
 
 ■lllMMi 
 
 
26 
 
 Origin of the Prairies. 
 
 ry, enable us to read all the rest, with almost as much 
 confidence as if the written history extended back to the 
 time when the first layer of peat was deposited. How 
 shall we restrain our impatience till the seal shall be broken 
 to similar volumes of history, which lie profusely scattered 
 all over prairie land, waiting to be opened and read by 
 the discriminating geologist '? There we may reasonably 
 hope to find facts which will throw a flood of light on 
 the subject of our present inquiry. There alone may we 
 hope to learn, with a reasonable degree of certainty, what 
 kinds of vegetation have grown on these great plains in 
 the long gone ages of the fir distant past. 
 
 But the supposition of igneous agency in producing 
 the effect under consideration is not a mere speculation or 
 conjecture. It is an established fact, proved by such evi- 
 dence as leaves no room for controversy. So that what- 
 ever else may also have contributed to the same result, 
 fire at least has done its share. In almost ever/ year, in 
 some part of the country, whole forests are consumed by 
 fire. In a majority of instances, no doubt, a new growth 
 of trees takes the place of the old, but such is not always 
 the case. Mr. Daniel Ebersol, of this city, who is a good 
 observer, and of undoubted veracity, informs me that 
 many years ago, on the Vermilion River, a fire occurred, 
 under his own observation, which utterly destroyed, root 
 and branch, an entire hard-wood forest, and that the entire 
 burnt district was directly taken possession of by the 
 herbaceous plants peculiar to the prairies, and that in a 
 very few years it could not be distinguished fr(»m the ad- 
 joining prairie, except by its greater luxuriance. The tes- 
 timony of Mr. J. E. Shaw, who has resided upon the prai- 
 ries of Illinois for more thi.i fifty, and upon his farm, 
 within two miles of Ottawa, for more than forty years, is 
 equally to the point. He assures me that he has known 
 
t as much 
 »ack to the 
 ed. How- 
 be broken 
 y scattered 
 id read by 
 reasonably 
 t" Hght on 
 ne mav we 
 ainty, what 
 It plains in 
 
 producing 
 ;culation or 
 >y.such evi- 
 
 that what- 
 ame result, 
 :r/ year, in 
 nsumed by 
 new growth 
 s not always 
 ho is a good 
 ns me that 
 re occurred, 
 troyed, root 
 lat the entire 
 
 of" by the 
 id that in a 
 T(»m the ad- 
 :e. The tes- 
 pon the prai- 
 cn his farm, 
 brty years, is 
 
 has known 
 
 i 
 
 Origin of the Vinirics. 
 
 27 
 
 many forest districts entirely burned over and every living 
 thing upon them destroyed. Generally they were replaced 
 with trees similar to the former growth ; but that some- 
 times the prairie herbage takes and maintains possession. 
 He cites an instance on his own farm, where, forty years 
 ago, when he took possession, there was a forest of large 
 trees, which was destroyed by a fire, when a part of the 
 burned district was again covered with trees, and a part 
 was taken possession of by the prairie grass, and in a com- 
 paratively short time could not be distinguished from the 
 adjoining prairie. He mentions another occurrence of 
 the same kind within his owu observation, in Putnam 
 county. All who know Mr. Shaw, as I have for a third 
 of a century, will place implicit confidence in the truth 
 of his statements and the accuracy of his observations. 
 Indeed, the character of the latter is such as scarcely to 
 admit of mistake. But corroborating testimony is abun- 
 dant. I have conversed with many old settlers in differ- 
 ent parts of the prairie regions, who mention similar oc- 
 currences. I venture the assertion, that a thousand wit- 
 nesses may be found still living who can state particular 
 instances oi the same kind. In my early wanderings over 
 the wild prairies it several times occurred, when approach- 
 ing a body of timber, that I met in the prairie grass 
 charred remains of forest trees, perhaps half a mile or 
 more from the edge of the wood, and I have in no in- 
 stance inquired of one who had similar facilities for ob- 
 servation who did not remember having observed the 
 same thing, t 
 
 In a former part of this paper I have shown, by evi- 
 dence which may be seen and comprehended at this day 
 by every observer, how prairies have been a ^d are still 
 being converted into forests. I have now stated, with 
 .considerable particularity, evidence satisfactorily showing 
 
rrr 
 
 'j 
 
 ;! 
 
 1 , 
 
 
 28 Origin of tfic Prairies. 
 
 how forests have been converted into prairies. This seems 
 to me of the very essence of the inquiry, A'hich can alone 
 be solved by evidence of authenticated facts, one ounce 
 of which should be entitled to more weight than a pound 
 of ingenious conjecture. 
 
 How vain, then, are the most plausible theories and tine 
 spun ^peculations, when we have this palpable, tangible 
 proof of the actual process by which the result has been 
 produced, and that by a simple cause adequate to the re- 
 sult. If the thousand witnesses who have observed this 
 processgoing on before their very eyes had been in the habit 
 of writing and publishing their observations for the last 
 half century, the question would have been long since so 
 conclusively settled, both among the learned and the un- 
 learned, that all men would be surprised that it was ever 
 a subject of dispute. The great danger to truth would 
 have been that too much effect would have been attribu- 
 ted to igneous agency. For myself, while I am prepared 
 to believe that this has been the most potent of all the 
 causes contributing to the result, I am also prepared to 
 admit that there have been many minor auxiliary causes 
 aiding the principal one, which may have escaped the at- 
 tention of observers. Leastofallof these are the facts, which 
 may be considered established as such, and which tend to 
 support what may be termed the shallow pond theory. 
 Those which are invoked in support of what may be 
 termed the arid theory may have had a considerable influ- 
 ence in aid of the prairie fires on what may be termed 
 the fertile prairie, and even the most controlling cause on 
 the desert plains, where both herbs and trees are nearly want- 
 ing for the lack of moisture to sustain them, even if once 
 there planted. Where there is not sufficient rain fall to 
 sustain trees when planted, we may reasonably assume 
 that that is the cause of their absence; but I am slow. 
 
Origin of the Vniirics. 
 
 ^9 
 
 This seems 
 
 ;h can alone 
 
 one ounce 
 
 lan a pound 
 
 iries and tine 
 >le, tangible 
 lit has been 
 te to the re- 
 bserved this 
 1 in the habit 
 
 for the last 
 ong since so 
 and the un- 
 : it was ever 
 
 truth would 
 been attribu- 
 am prepared 
 It of all the 
 [> prepared to 
 ciliary causes 
 caped the at- 
 le facts, which 
 ivhich tend to 
 pond theory, 
 ivhat may be 
 iderable influ- 
 ly be termed 
 lling cause on 
 e nearly want- 
 , even if once 
 ent rain fall to 
 >nably assume 
 lut I am slow^ 
 
 to believe that this, or the peculiar (;onstituents of the 
 soil, is the principal cause where trees grow and flourish 
 vigorously when ance introduced. The same cause which 
 keeps them away should kill them when present, if still 
 operating. If there is less annual rain fall in prairie than 
 in timber districts, we may appreciate that fires, from that 
 cause, may have been more frequent and more destruc- 
 tive, while our daily observation proves that the limited 
 quantity of rains does not render the soil or the atmos- 
 phere unadapted to the growth of trees, at least on the 
 prairies east of the Missouri River. 
 
 In grouping together some of the facts in support of 
 what may be denominated the igneous theory, I but state 
 a theory which is as old as the first white settlements upon 
 the prairies; but because it has been universally accepted 
 by those who have had the greatest opportunities for ob- 
 serving the facts bearing upon the question, although they 
 make no pretensions to scientific attainments, — for that 
 reason I do not feel called upon to reject it, and with it a 
 great volume of facts which seem to conclusively estab- 
 lish it. At least till some one else shall produce other 
 tangible facts, as well supported by proof as these, in sup- 
 port of some other theory, and tending to prove the fal- 
 lacy of the conclusions deduced from these, I must be- 
 lieve that the popular opinion of the country is in the 
 main correct. 
 
 Perhaps I have too little respect for mere theories, and 
 too much reverence for facts, I cannot be content with 
 general observations of facts without descending to their 
 minute details, which in my view become of immense im- 
 portance as qualifying or explaining more general observa- 
 vation. If, without the careful study of well established 
 facts, mere theories may be draped in the tinsel glitter 
 of learned speculations, they can never satisfy that whole- 
 
H "■'■' "■■ — 
 
 -p Origin of the Pniiiies. 
 
 some craving tot exact kt,owledge, ^vhich alone fotms a 
 
 rrb^s It definite conclusions. S^ien" has -rne- 
 
 times suffeted grievous «tong fr^.^™ °^^" ™X 
 
 who have felt called upon to cxplam evetyth.ng, whethet 
 
 Ixplicable or not by ascettained facts-. >"<!.">''«''• *e 
 
 mote occult the explanarion, the mote ptofound would 
 
 h leammg appeal If U so happen that man^est facU 
 
 are opposed to theit theories, why-so much the wotse 
 
 for the facts ! 
 
 Muai 
 
 nim i i ii n ii i iiiiii i i nmniiHi ii iMiii i l 
 
E forms a 
 las some- 
 r votaries, 
 g, whether 
 ndeed, the 
 ind would 
 inifest facts 
 I the worse 
 
f 
 
 
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 a'^.^.J«^ic*!it(rS*^irili4^^.i^:4J»^~i: 
 
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