I L L I N O I S UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN PRODUCTION NOTE University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library Brittle Books Project, 2015.COPYRIGHT NOTIFICATION In Public Domain. Published prior to 1923. This digital copy was made from the printed version held by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It was made in compliance with copyright law. Prepared for the Brittle Books Project, Main Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign by Northern Micrographics Brookhaven Bindery La Crosse, Wisconsin 2015ABSTRACTS OF PAPERS READ BEFORE THE NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES in i887-,88. BY H. 0AERIN GTO X BOLTON, Ph.D. CONTENTS: The Counting-out Rhymes of Children; A Study in International Folk-lore. Remarks on early Practice of Vaccination by Dr. Elisha North. Notes on Recent Travel in Europe. Preliminary Notice of a New Study in Folk-Lore. Notes on the Rock-Salt Mines of Petite Anse, Louisiana. Extracts from Transactions New York Academy of Sciences, Vol. VII. NEW YORK 1888.J) ) /• f _ 0 o-. ABSTRACTS OF PAPERS BEAD BEFORE THE NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES IN 1887-'8.8. . BY H. CARRIJ5TGTON BOLTON. THE COUNTING-OUT RHYMES OF CHILDREN; A STUDY IN INTERNATIONAL FOLK-LORE. (Read October 24th, 1887.) [Abstract.] Children playing out-door games, such as "Hide and Seek" and "I Spy," in which one of their number has to take an un- desirable part, adopt a method of determining who shall bear the burden, which involves the principle of casting lots, but differs in manner of execution. The process is called in Scotland "chapping out" and "titting out," but in England and Amer- ica it is commonly known as "counting-out." It is usually conducted as follows: a leader, generally self-appointed, having Q. secured the attention of the boys and girls about to join in the proposed game, arranges them in a row or in a circle around , j him as fancy may dictate. He then repeats a peculiar doggerel, _ sometimes with a rapidity which can only be acquired by great „j familiarity and a dextrous tongue, and pointing with the hand or forefinger to each child in succession, not forgetting himself (or herself), allots to each one word of the mysterious formula: % One-ery, fcwo-ery, ickery, Ann, 5- Fillicy, fallacy, Nicholas, John, Queever, quaver, English, knaver, Stinckelum, stanckelum, Jericho, buck! •p 356912 This example contains sixteen words; if there is a greater number of children a longer verse is used, but generally the number of words is greater than the number of children, so that the leader begins the round of the group a second time, and may- hap a third time, giving to each child one word of the doggerel. Having completed the verse or sentence, the child on whom the last word falls is said to be " out," and steps aside. In repeating the above doggerel, the accent falls on the first syllable of each polysyllabic word; a very common ending is: One, two, three, Out goes she (or he) ! and the last word is generally said with great emphasis, or shouted. After the child thus "counted-out" has withdrawn, the leader repeats the same doggerel with the same formalities, and, as before, the boy or girl to whom the last word is allotted is "out" and stands aside. The unmeaning doggerel is repeated again and again to a diminishing number of children, and the process of elimination is continued until only two of them remain. The leader then counts-out once more, and the child not set free by the magic word is declared to be "it" and must take the objectionable part in the "game. The word "it" is always used in this technical sense, denoting the one bearing the disagreeable duty, or perhaps the distin- guished part, in a game; no child questions its meaning, nor have we learned of any substitute for this significant mono- syllable; it is not safe, however, to assert that there is no equiva- lent when we consider the innumerable whims of the army of children. The declaration to a child: "Youareit!" following the process of counting out, seems to carry with it the force of a military order, and is, in many cases, more promptly obeyed than a parent's command. Children learn these rhymes by sound alone from their play- mates a few years older ; though accuracy is faithfully attempted, changes are introduced from time to time, and in the course of generations the results would scarcely be recognized by the chil- dren of an earlier period. The round game of Scandal, which is said to have furnished amusement to English literary celebri- ties, illustrates the way in which oral communications are dis- torted. Since counting-out is the main object in view, the puerile mind is probably satisfied with retaining tha rhythm, the rhyme, the number of words, and the general construction, any or all of these features. So far as counting-out is concerned in the simple rhyme :3 " One, two, three, four, Mary at the cottage door, Five, six, seven, eight, Eating cherries off a plate ; " it makes no difference whether we say Jennie for Mary, kitchen for cottage, apples for cherries, and picking for eating; the general effect is the same. A very natural corruption is that of : " One is all, two is all, six is all, seven " into "One-erzoll, two-erzoll, zickerzoll, zan " but the conversion of "bobtail vinegar" (with which the second line begins) into "Baptist minister," is a surprise. Yet the history of the English language affords continually examples equally eccentric; the names of old taverns in England have undergone curious transformation at the hands, or strictly at the mouths, of the common people. The British tar who finds his sea-home christened " Bellerophon," is not long in transmuting it into Billy Ruffian, a much more comprehensible and satisfac- tory name to him. " V Hirondelle" became in like manner Iron Devil. The school-boy looks upon these rhymes as merely queer sounds and has "no compunction in making them queerer ^ and his genius leads him to tack on other nonsense provided it rhymes." (Ellis.) The number of these doggerels in use among children is far greater than commonly supposed. The speaker has collected no less than 450 current in England and America ; of these he gave about twenty examples. He has also succeeded in demonstrating that the custom of counting-out obtains around the world among civilized and semi-civilized races, and by correspondence and personal in- quiry he has collected examples in the following languages : Penobscot, Japanese, Hawaii, Mar&thi, Romany, Arabic, Turk- ish, Armenian, Bulgarian, Modern Greek, Swedish, Portuguese, Spanish, Basque, Italian, French, Dutch,.Platt-deutsch, German; and with the English above-named they number over 870. Having established the wide distribution of the custom of counting-outn the speaker discussed the antiquity and origin first of the practice and second of the rhymes themselves. He finds the practice to be a survival of sortilege or divination by lot. Sortilege was practised among the ancient heathen nations as well as by the Israelites, and he gave many illustrations of" this, especially dwelling on the story of Achan related by Joshua. The use of the lot at first received divine sanction, but after this was withheld, the practice fell into the hands of sorcerers,, which very name signifies lot-taker. The doggerels themselves the speaker regards as a survival of the spoken charms used by4 the sorcerers of ancient times in conjunction with their mystic incantations. He gave numerous examples of these charms, such as : ** Huat hanat ista pista sista domiabo damnaustra." (Cato, 235b.c.) and: " Irririori, ririori essere, rhuder fere," and: Meu, treu, mor, phor, Teux, za, zor, Phe, lou, chri, Ge, ze, on, (Alexander of Tralles.) In only one instance had the speaker been able directly to connect a child's counting-out rhyme with a magic spell; ac- cording to Leland the rhyme beginning: One-ery, two-ery, iekery, Ann, above given, is a Gypsy magic spell in the Romany language. Tylor, in his " Primitive Culture," holds that things which occupy an important place in the life-history of grown men in a savage state, become the playthings of children in a period of civilization; thus the sling and the bow and arrow, which formed the weapons of mankind in an early stage of its exis- tence, and are still the reliance of savage tribes, have become toys in the hands of all civilized children at the present day. Many games current in Europe and America are known to be sportive imitations of customs which formerly had a significant and serious aspect. Adopting this theory, the speaker holds that games of chance are in part survivals of the practices of the sorcerer, using this word in its restricted and etymological meaning; he maintains, further, that the spoken and written charms originally used to enforce priestly power, have become adjuncts to these puerile games, and the basis of the counting-out doggerels under conr sideration. The idea that European and American children engaged in 4tcounting-out" for games are repeating in innocent ignorance the practices and language of a sorcerer of a dark age, is per- haps startling, but can be shown to have a high degree of prob- ability. The leader in counting-out performs an incantation, but the children grouped around him are free from that awe and superstitious reverence which characterized the procedure in its earlier state. Many circumstances make this view plausible, and clothe the doggerels with a new and fascinating interest. Following out this idea, the speaker showed many analogies between ancient customs and present games of children, in the use of the pebble, of the inverted cap, in the design for which5 the counting-out is applied, etc. He showed the similarity in all languages of the rhythm, admixture of gibberish with words having meaning, and in the use of numerals, and claimed for these analogies indications of antiquity. He indicated the modern origin of some of the rhymes current in America; as for example: One, two, three, four, five, six, seven; All good children go to Heaven; All bad children go below To keep company with Guiteau. He showed also the geographical sources of some of these dog- gerels, and the influence of environment on them. In conclusion he referred briefly to the Anglo-Cymric Score, popularly supposed to be an "Indian" method of counting, but m reality of Welsh origin, as shown by Ellis. (Bead November 21st, 1887.) Dr. H. 0. Boltok exhibited an original letter, dated April 30th, 1801, written by Dr. Edward Miller, of New York, to Dr. Elisha North, of Goshen, Conn., which contained information bearing upon the early history of vaccination in New Yorlc City. The circumstances under which the letter was written are as follows: Dr. Elisha North practised vaccination in Goshen during the winter of 1800-01 with marked success. In the spring, a young man by the name of Ives went to consult Dr. North for divers slight ailments and a sore on his hand. This sore Dr. North recognized to be a cow-pox pustule, and, on inquiry, learned that it was produced directly from the udder of a cow while milking. With lymph from this pustule, Dr. North vaccinated an infant successfully, and from the infant vaccinated a Mr. Hunt. This latter going to New York on his private business while the lymph was fresh, went, at Dr. North's request, to call on Dr. Edward Miller, and the New York physician thus obtained fresh vaccine matter. The letter exhibited was one by Dr. Miller thanking Dr. North for his kindness in sending him vaccine matter. The date of the introduction of vaccine matter into New York City by Dr. Elisha North is March 25th, 1801 (Medical Reposi-6 tory, 1801), and is two months earlier than the date, May 22d, 1801, at which Dr. Valentine Seaman made his first trial of vaccination. Yet Dr. Seaman is often credited with being the first to practise vaccination in New York City. It is interesting to note that the lymph used by Dr. North was derived from an American source, and not imported from England as had always been the custom. Farther details of these circumstances, with the entire letter, will be found in the Transactions of the Conn. Med. Society, Vol. III., p. 135, 1887. NOTES OP RECENT TRAVEL IN EUROPE. (Read November 28th, 1887.) (Abstract.) Under this title Dr. Bolton spoke of his experiences and ob- servations of a scientific and literary character during the pre- ceding summer. After alluding to the deplorable condition of the stokers on ocean steamers, who work in a temperature vary- ing from 92° to 98° (outside being 67°), the speaker pointed out the literary blunder on a tablet erected in 1882 in Westmin- ster Abbey by the dean and chapter. It reads, to the memory of "J. Lemuel Chester, L. L. D., of Columbia College," in- stead of LL.D., as every tyro knows it should be. In Oxford he visited Dr. J. A. H. Murray, and the remarkable iron "scriptorium" in which the manuscript of the new English dictionary of the Philological Society is preserved. He also visited the Bodleian Library, and made some study of the por- traits of Priestley in the Hope collection, and of Dr. Dee's al- chemical manuscripts in the Ashmolean collection. He exhib- ited a photograph of the statue of Dr. Priestley erected in the University museum. At Brighton he examined the workings of Yolk's Electric Railway, a line first opened in August, 1883, and extended af- terwards to one mile in length. Cars seating thirty passengers are run at a speed of eight miles an hour by an electric motor of ten horse power placed beneath the floor. The electricity is generated by a fixed Crossley gas engine of twelve horse power, which drives a Siemens dynamo, the current from which is conducted to the rails by cables under the road. There are two steep gradients (1 in 28, and 1 in 14) but the line is generally level, running along the beach. The expense of operating, after four years' experience, is said to be far less than that of steam orn horse power. ^ Over one million of passengers have been trans- ported without the slightest injury. A similarly constructed railway exists at Ryde, I. W. Crossing the channel to Jersey, the speaker was struck chiefly by the tides, which rise forty feet, and by the cabbages, which grow on stalks eight to twelve feet high. He spoke of the de- creasing population, of the picturesque rocky headlands on the north coast, of the geological features, and of the flora and fauna of the island. Passing to France, he proceeded through Brittany to Bordeaux. At Rennes he observed in the handsome park " Le Thabor " near the Archepiscopal Palace, a long, wide, and deep excavation, called by the people "VEnferj" inquiry •established the fact that the excavation had been made by priests of the adjoining monastery, condemned to do penance by digging the hole and throwing up the earth. The banks are now surmounted by large and old trees. A case of the earth being modified by man, and not a geological phenomenon. At Bordeaux, he noticed on the occasion of the National F&te, July 14th, a great consumption, in the evening, of barium and strontium nitrates. On the railway between Bordeaux Dr. Bolton was mistaken by French officials for a German spy, and was closely interrogated by a gendarme, but on showing his passport was suffered to proceed. He alluded to the resemblance between Vichy and Saratoga, to the new monument to Ampere at Lyons, of which he was a native (born January 22d, 1775), and to some enormous hail- stones that fell one hot afternoon in Geneva. This storm was followed next day by an atmosphere so pure that Mt. Blanc was distinctly and uninterruptedly seen from before sunrise until after sunset. At Montreux he examined the working of the chemin-de-fer funiculctire ascending to Glion. The line, which has an inclination of 57°, is constructed with a central cogged rail, into which cogged wheels on each car are adjusted. Two cars are so connected by cable that when one is at the top of the incline the other is at the bottom, and the motive power is the weight of water introduced into a reservoir beneath the upper car ; the water flows into the reservoir from a stream above; as soon as enough enters to overcome resistance, the car moves slowly downward, shutting off the water automatically, and pulling up the other car with its load. At the bottom of the incline the water is automatically discharged from the reser- yoir. Railways are now run on this plan in several places in Switzerland. That in question is operated all the year around; the expense is obviously very small. In the valley of St. Nicholas, on the road to Zermatt, the speaker noticed the method adopted by small farmers to recover8 meadow land from the ravages of the glacier torrent. By con- structing low stone walls at right angles to the stream and ex- tending a short distance from the banks towards the centre, silt is entrapped so rapidly that the space between the walls in course of time becomes completely filled; a coarse grass springs up, and the ground is redeemed. Specimens of the very fine silt collected by him have been placed in the hands of Dr. A. A. Julien for microscopical study. At the Ehone glacier Dr. Bolton examined the artificial tunnel excavated in the ice and particularly observed the very beautiful color of the light within the tunnel; the tunnel being serpentine, all the light within passed through a thick roof of ice, and the color within was of a lavender blue, brilliant and trying to the eyes. At Luzerne, the speaker visited the so-called Gletscher-Garten, discovered in 1872-75, with its wonderful glacier mills, the largest measuring 8 m. in width and 9.5 m. in depth. In Munich, Dr. Bolton had the pleasure of social converse with Professor Charles A. Joy, a former president of the Academy, and always its well wisher. Professor Joy sent mes- sages of remembrance to all his friends in the Academy. Dr. Bolton alluded to the singularly obstructive rules for ob- taining books at the Royal Library, Munich, twenty-four hours' notice being required, and spoke of the superb library building at Stuttgart. In Frankfurt, the " Palmen-Garten" with its magnificent conservatory of palms was commended to botanists. A photograph of the interior of the conservatory was exhibited. In Holland, the speaker made a visit to the little island of Marken; being in the ZuyderZee, some miles from the mainland and accessible only by sailboats, the inhabitants have preserved, to a notable extent, ancient costumes and customs; they have intermarried to a very large extent, and the speaker thought the little girls especially looked strikingly similar, as if cousins. In Brussels, the speaker noticed another electric railway run by a motor operated by accumulators placed beneath the seats. Referring to London, he spoke of his personal friendship with the descendants of the celebrated divine and chemist, Dr. Joseph Priestley, and exhibited a historic cane now in his pos- session, which was given to Priestley by Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United States. The cane is a Malacca stick with a plain ebony top and a gold band. He also exhibited a number of letters written by Priestley to Wedgwood between 1780 and 1792, and promised on another occasion to make their contents public.9 PRELIMINARY NOTICE OE A NEW STUDY IN EOLK-LORE. (Read, February 13 th, 1888.) (Abstract.) Dr. Bolton stated that he had begun to collect and investigate the Terms Used in Talking to Domestic Animals. In controlling the movements of domestic animals by the voice, besides words of ordinary import, man uses a variety of peculiar terms, calls, and inarticulate sounds—not to include whistling—which vary in different localities. In driving yoked cattle and harnessed horses teamsters cry "get up," "click click" (tongue against teeth), "gee," "haw," "whoa," "whoosh," "back," etc., in English-speaking countries; "arre," "am," "jiih," "gio," etc., in European coun- tries. In the United States "gee" directs the animals away from the driver, hence to the right, but, according to Webster's Dic- tionary, in England the same term has the opposite effect; because the driver walks on the right hand side of his team. In Virginia, mule drivers gee the animals with the cry "hep-yee-ee-a;" in Norfolk, England, "whoosh-wo;" in France, "hue" and "huhaut;" in Germany "hott" and "hotte;" in some parts of Russia, "haita" serve the same pur- pose. To direct animals to the left another series of terms is used, such as: "haw" (U.S.); "who-haw" (Va.); "who- hysh" (Me.); "whoosh" (Suffolk); " har," also "hii" (Ger- many); "dia" (France); "vishta" (Southern Russia). In calling cattle in the field, a great variety of terms are used,of which the following are examples: "bos, bos" (Conn.); "sake, sake "(Conn.); coo, coo" (Va.); "sook,"and "sookey," also "sookow" (Southern U.S.); " koeb, koeb" (Me.); "cusha" (Scotland). In calling sheep, "konan,"and " konanny" (Ga.); "k'day, k'day " (Conn.). In calling horses "kope" is common in the Southern U. S., and the Creoles of Louisiana cry " see-chuck." In calling hogs in the field "chee-oo-oo" (Va.), "pig-ooy" (111.), "chaw-awg" (Va.), "whoop" (Ga.), are some of the terms current in the localities named. With the exception of whoa, gee, and haw, and some others, these words are not found in dictionaries, and the speaker pro- poses to form a vocabulary of them. In the cases of inarticulate sounds, chirps, and clicks, he adopts the notation of Professor A. Melvill Bell, author of "Visible Speech." Of this system and its application to the case in hand he gave illustrations on the blackboard.10 Dr. Bolton gave examples of the terms used in Germany, France. Switzerland, Norway, Russia, Southern India, and among the Eskimo. He pointed out certain common features as well as some singular reversals; sounds used in one country to start and urge horses are used in another country, or even in another part of the same country, to stop them. He further gave quotations from early literature, and referred to the explanations occurring in certain English dictionaries of archaic and provin- cial words. In conclusion, he stated that this should be regarded as a preliminary notice made for the purpose of asking assistance of persons interested. He is desirous of collecting words and expressions (oaths excepted) used in addressing domesticated animals in all parts of the United States and in foreign lands. In particular he seeks information as to: (1) The terms used to start, hasten, haw, gee, back, and stop fiorses, oxen, camels, and other animals in harness. (2) Terms used for calling in the field: cattle, horses, mules, asses, camels, sheep, goats, swine, poultry, and other animals. (3) Exclamations used in driving from the person domestic animals. (4) Any expressions and inarticulate sounds used in ad- dressing domestic animals for any purpose whatever (dogs and cats), (5) Eeferences to information in works of travel and general literature will be very welcome. The speaker suggests that persons willing to collect these data may indicate the value of vowels in English by using the vowel signs of Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, and in cases of difficul- ty terms may be spelled phonetically. He stated that he would be grateful for contributions, oral or written, and that materials used in a future publication would be credited to the con- tributors. Correspondence.should be addressed to him at the University Club, New York City. NOTES ON THE KOCK-SALT MINES OF PETITE ANSE, LOUISIANA. (Read February 13th, 1888.) (Abstract.) The southern coast of Louisiana, west of the Mississippi E-iver, is indented by several bays through which the waters of innumerable bayous pass into the Gulf of Mexico. Near the head of one of these bays, known as Vermilion Bay, there is a nearly11 circular island of about 2,500 acres in extent, which rises above the low marshes of the vicinity to the height of 180 feet, form-- ing a notable feature in the monotonous landscape. This is the well-known island of Petite Anse, also called Avery's Island after its present owners, in which occurs a remarkable deposit of rock-salt. Petite Anse is now easily reached by rail, via the Southern Pacific Railroad, from New Orleans as far as New Iberia (about 125 miles), and thence, by a branch road, 10 miles long, to the salt mine. Cotton and sugar plantations, uncul- tivated fields, marshes, corn-fields, and cypress.swamps alternate with luxuriant forests of live-oak, gum, hickory, black walnut, cypress, maple, and magnolia. About two-thirds of the island are under cultivation, the most profitable crops being sugar, salt, and Tobasco pepper-sauce. Three ranges of hills can be traced, the surface water from which has cut its way deeply through the alluvial deposits, forming ravines, which, with ponds, forests, and cultivated fields, make the island a picturesque oasis in a desert of marsh and cypress swamps. The existence of salt on this island has been known for a very long time, as shown by the fragments of pottery, arrow-heads, and basket work found mixed with bones of the mastodon, buffalo, and deer, unearthed in recent excavations. The written history of the deposit begins with 1791, when John Hays found a brine spring while hunting. In the last century, salt was made by boiling down the brine, and between the years 1812 and 1815 the amount produced was large. It then ceased for a time. Later, Judge D. D. Avery became owner of the island, and at the outbreak of the rebellion renewed operations on a large scale; the blockade made the salt exceedingly valuable, so that one time a bag of salt was exchanged for a bale of cotton. On May 4th, 1862, Mr. John Marsh Avery attempted to deepen a brine pit, and struck rock-salt at a depth of 16 to 17 feet below the surface. The Confederate Government then instituted mining by means of pits, and, 400-600 men being constantly employed, the island was a scene of prodigious activity. The Northern troops, however, seized the island April 20th, 1863, and put a stop to the industry. During these eleven months, about 22 million pounds of salt are estimated to have been taken out, the average price being 4i cents per pound. The first scientific observer who visited the deposit after these events was Professor Richard Owen in November, 1865 {Am. J. Sci., July, 1866, p. 120). In 1866, Professor Charles A. Goess- mann visited the place on behalf of the American Bureau of Mines ("Report of the American Bureau of Mines on the Rock- salt Deposit of Petite Anse," 4to, New York, 1867), and one year later it was examined by Professor E. W. Hilgard of the Geo-12 logical Survey (Am. J. Sci.y Jan., 1869, and " Mineral Resources of the United States," Albert Williams, Jr., Washington, 1883). To the reports of these gentlemen we owe some of the par- ticulars of this notice. The rock-salt lies only fifteen to twenty feet beneath the surface. The surface soil is a dark loam, beneath which occur layers of coarse and fine sand, gravel, and clay, all. irregularly stratified and in no definite direction. The salt itself occurs as a massive crystalline rock of a saccliaroidal texture, dry, hard, and homogeneous. It is of a white color, except in streaks- or bands two to six inches in width, which are quite black The salt appears to have a uniform character in all parts of the mine, and is remarkable for its purity, especially in its freedom from calcium and magnesium salts. It is also quite free from potassium salts; for traces of Stassfurt salts I made especial search in vain. The following analyses show the great purity of this product: Analysis by Mr. F. W. Taylor, (Smithsonian Institution) March, 1882. Sodium chloride, 98.731 Calcium sulphate, 1.192 Calcium chloride, Trace Magnesium chloride, 0.013 Silica, 0.024 Iron sesquioxide, 0.010 Water, 0.030 Analysis bv E. W. Hilgard. 1863. 99.880 0.126 Trace 100.006 100.000 Other analyses made by Professor G-oessmann range from 98.8& to 99.60. It is of interest to compare this with rock-salt from other localities. Cheshire. Stassfurt. Berchtesgaden.. 98.30 94.57 Sodium chloride, Potassium chloride, Calcium chloride, Magnesium chloride, Calcium sulphate, Insoluble, Water, 0.05 1.65 0.97 0.89 3.35 .22 100.00 100.00 Trace. Trace. 0.15 100.00 Partial analyses of the black salt have been made by Mr*. McCalla, the resident engineer and chemist, who finds that it yields a white solution and about seven per cent of a white in- soluble residue, chiefly gypsum. The black color, therefore, seems to be an optical phenomenon. These black bands form well-marked folds in the salt, the space between the ridges and13 above them being filled with coarser grannies of salt than the rest. Near these black bands the finest cleavage crystals of transparent purity are found. These bands seem to indicate that at some time the rock-mass has been subjected to lateral pressure, causing ridges. The geological features of the island and the origin of the salt -deposit have been discussed by both Professor Groessmann and Professor Hilgard. The former thinks it is " probably of ter- tiaryage," and says, " many circumstances favor the theory that the deposit is a secondary one—resulting from the evaporation of brine springs, originating from beds of rock-salt in some older geological formation—and not a direct residuum of the sea. This explains the entire absence of intercalations of gypsum and the absence of potassium and magnesium compounds." Professor Hilgard thinks it should be assigned to the creta- ceous, since there is "no phase of the tertiary history of the Oulf of Mexico that seems to admit of" the conditions required, viz.: the long-continued evaporation of some very large body of •sea-water. He calls attention to the banded structure of the rock-salt, and remarks that the " Stassfurt salts" belonging to the salt mass have long ago been washed into the general ocean. We would call the attention of geologists to two facts which may throw light on the questions: the occurrence on the island of bedded sandstone and of lignite. The sandstone is exposed at the bottom of a deep ravine about 1,500 feet from the shaft, the rock is •of a light gray color and contains little or no calcite. It is dis- tinctly seen, to be in place, and is weathered to a considerable depth beneath the surface. At the base of another ravine, formed by a rivulet cutting through the alluvium, gravel and sand, and at a distance of about 2,000 feet from the shaft, there is an outcrop of lignite. The latter is apparently several feet in width and of good quality for economic purposes. Mr. McCalla reports that it contains fifteen per cent of ash. Both the sandstone and the lignite seem to dip in such a direction (S. E.) as would cause them to run beneath the salt. This view is also confirmed by some of the borings. Indications ■of fossil plants occur in the brown coal, but at the time of my visit it was unfortunately impracticable to dig deeply into it, and I had to be content with a mere surface specimen. There are four other islands stretching along the coast in the vicinity, but borings have failed to reveal salt on any of them. The mine is now worked by a system of chambers and cross- headings. The single shaft has reached a depth of 166 feet (in- cluding the sump of 6 feet). The old workings at a depth of 90 feet have been abandoned, owing to the infiltration from above of water carrying with it clay and sand, which rendered14 the salt-impure. The lower level is at a depth of 160 feet. The- extent of the excavation in the upper level is about 8 acres, and the extreme ends of the galleries are 900 feet apart. The ex- cavation on the lower level is much smaller. The method of operating is to run galleries about 6 to 8 feet high, and then to work upward to a height of 40 feet, leaving between the galleries large pillars to support the roof. The boring is done with a kind of auger of a German pattern, imported in deference to the pre- * judices of the workmen, who are largely Stassfurt miners. The auger is worked by hand and penetrates the salt one inch for every 12 revolutions of the bit. The blasting is done with dy- namite, of which 80 to 100 boxes, each containing 100 lbs., are used every month, say on an average 150 lbs. daily. After blasting down 40 feet, the salt is broken by sledges,- placed in small hand-carts, and hoisted on a platform to the sur- face by steam power. About one hundred men are employed by the company, of whom fifty work below the surface. They work on ten-hours time. The rock mass is quite dry, but, owing to bad management in the early history of the mine, water from the surface runs into it through seams and openings; to remove this, two pumps, capable of throwing out 100 gallons per minute, are run about ten hours out of the twenty-four. The brine pumped out is allowed to waste. Ventilation is necessitated by the great quantity of dynamite exploded daily. Air is supplied by a fan 8 feet in diameter, 4 feet wide, driven at about 250 revolutions per minute. This, it is estimated, supplies about 600,000 cubic feet of air per hour. Pockets of an inflammable gas have been repeatedly struck, and on a recent occasion the issuing gas was lit and burnt for an hour or more. Perhaps this phenomenon is connected with the underlying lignite. The engines used for running the blower, the fan, reels, breakers, etc., are three in number, and aggregate 250 horse- power. The salt brought to the surface is crushed between corrugated rollers driven at high speed; one set breaks it into lumps from two to three inches in diameter, and another into lumps one-half inch in diameter and finer. It is then ground into various grades by six buhr-stone mills, each capable of grinding 50 tons in ten hours. The salt is sorted by jigs, revolving reels, and blowers, the fine dust being blown out by a horizontal current of air striking against a column of falling salt. The salt is sent into market in eight grades: (1) Kock-salt in lumps from 100 to 300 pounds, used by farmers, it being placed under sheds for cattle to lick. (2) Crushed salt that passes15 over 4-inch screens and through f-inch screens. (3) "Fish salt," including all which passes through a J-inch screen.. (4) Coarse ground. (5) Medium ground. (6) Fine ground. (7) For sack and barrel salt the coarser particles of grade 6 are screened out with a wire screen of ten meshes to the inch, and the fine dust is blown out. (8) The fine dust thus blown out divides itself by gravity into an impalpable part (which is thrown away, being a small percentage) and a. coarser part, which forms table salt. The salt is shipped to market in sacks and barrels. For the year ending July, 1887, the product was 44,000 tons. In a busy season, the daily shipments run as high as 300 tons. Formerly the material was transported by water, through a canal expressly maintained for the purpose, into the bay some miles distant; now the railway carries it exclusively. The amount of salt in sight is very great, and the possible extent of the deposit is enormous. Borings show that about 142 acres of ground are underlaid with salt, the extreme depth of which has not been ascertained, though borings have been sunk 190 feet. Everywhere the character of the salt is the same, and the mine is evidently destined to supply the market for generations to come. At present, the owners of the property have leased the mining privilege for a consideration to the American Salt Company. [Specimens of sandstone, lignite, and salt were exhibited, the latter in transparent cleavage crystals some of which mea- sured 4x3x2 inches.] Dr. Bolton expressed his obligations to Capt.Hascall for hospi- tality, and to the Messrs. Avery for courtesies during his visit. He also desired to thank Mr. McOalla for kind attentions and valued information.This book is a preservation facsimile produced for the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. It is made in compliance with copyright law and produced on acid-free archival 60# book weight paper which meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (permanence of paper). Preservation facsimile printing and binding by Northern Micrographics Brookhaven Bindery La Crosse, Wisconsin 2015