2. Schizothærus Nuttalli, Conr.
3. Entodesma saxicola, Baird.
4. Mytilimeria Nuttalli, Conr.
5. Machæra patula, Dixon.
6. Macoma secta, Conr.*
7. —— nasuta, Conr.
8. Tellina Bodegensis, Hds.
9. Tapes staminea, Conr.‡
10. —— —— var. Petitii, Desh.‡
11. —— —— var. ruderata, Desh.‡
12. —— —— var. diversa, Sby.‡
13. Saxidomus gracilis, Gould.*
14. Chama exogyra, Conr.*
15. Cardium corbis, Mart.
16. Lazaria sub-quadrata, Cpr.
17. Kellia Laperousii, Desh.
18. Lasea rubra, Mont.
19. Mytilus Californianus, Conr.
20. —— edulis, Linn.
21. Modiola fornicata, Cpr.*
22. —— recta, Cour.*
23. Axinœa subobsoleta, Cpr.
24. Pecten hastatus, Sby.
25. Hinnites giganteus, Gray.
26. Placunanomia machrochisma, Desh.
27. Helix Nickliniana, Lea.
28. —— Columbiana, Lea.
29. Cryptochiton Stelleri, Midd.
30. Tonicia lineata, Wood.
31. Mopalia Wossnessenskii, Midd.
32. —— Merckii, Midd.
33. Kennerlyi var. Swanii, Cpr.
34. Trachydermon fallax, Cpr. (Mss.)
35. Nacella instabilis, Gould.
36. Acmæa patina, Esch.
37. —— pelta, Esch.
38. —— persona, Esch.
39. —— scabra, Nutt.*
40. —— spectrum, Nutt.
41. Scurria mitra, Esch.
42. Rowellia radiata, Cp.*
43. Glyphis aspera, Esch.
44. Clypidella callomarginata, Cpr.*
45. —— bimaculata, Dall, (Mss.)*
46. Haliotis rufescens, Swains.*
47. Leptothyra sanguinea, Cpr.
48. Chlorostoma funebrale, A. Ad.
49. —— brunneum, Phil.
50. Calliostoma costatum, Mart.
51. —— annulatum, Mart.
52. Phorcus pulligo, Mart.
53. Margarita pupilla, Gould.
54. —— acuticostata, Cpr.*
55. Crepidula adunca, Sby.
56. Hipponyx cranioides, Cpr.
57. —— antiquatus, Linn.*
58. Bivonia compacta, Cpr.
59. Bittium filosum, Gould.
60. Littorina planaxis, Nutt.
61. —— scutulata, Gould.
62. Lacuna porrecta, Cpr.
63. Trivia Californiana, Gray.*
64. Erato vitellina, Hds.*
65. Drillia incisa, Cpr.
66. Mangelia levidensis, Cpr.†
67. Odostomia gravida, Gould.*
68. Scalaria subcoronata, Cpr.*
69. Opalia borealis, Gould.
70. Velutina lævigata, Linn.
71. Lunatia Lewisii, Gould.
72. Olivella biplicata, Sby.
73. —— bœtica, Cpr.
74. —— intorta, Cpr.*
75. Nassa fossata, Gould.
76. —— mendica, Gould.
77. Amycla carinata var. Hindsii, Rve.
78. —— gausapata, Gould.
79. Amphissa corrugata, Rve.
80. Purpura crispata, Chem.
81. —— canaliculata, Duel.
82. —— saxicola var. ostrina, Gld.
83. Ocinebra lurida, Midd.
84. —— —— var. aspera, Baird.
85. —— interfossa, Cpr.
86. —— —— var. atropurpurea, Cpr.
87. Cerostoma foliatum, Gmel.
* The species marked with an asterisk, seventeen in number,
have never before been reported from a locality so far north.
† Mangelia levidensis (teste J. G. Cooper) has not previously
been detected at a point so far south; it has heretofore been
credited to “Straits of Fuca, W. T.” _vide_ Geo. Survey Cat.
1867, by J. G. C.
‡ Tapes staminea and vars. were obtained at low water by
digging from twelve to twenty inches deep, and together with
Macoma secta and M. nasuta, were found in the same holes.
The Chitons above enumerated, have been compared with specimens
recently (March, 1868) received labeled, from Dr. Carpenter of
Montreal.
No. 39, Acmæa scabra; elevated dark colored specimens of this
species with the characteristic sculpture sharply and well
defined, were obtained in considerable numbers. Subsequently
at Monterey I found occasional specimens displaying nearly the
same elevation and of the same color as those from Bodega.
Shells collected by the U. S. Coast Survey Expedition to Alaska, in the
year 1867.
BY ROBERT E. C. STEARNS.
George Davidson, Esq., connected with the Coast Survey service
of the United States, who commanded the scientific department
of the Alaska Expedition, very kindly tendered positions on his
staff to the following members of the Academy: Dr. A. Kellogg,
as Surgeon and Botanist; Theodore A. Blake, as Geologist; and
W. G. W. Harford, as General Collector, by whom the species
here enumerated were collected. My acknowledgments are due
to Dr. J. G. Cooper, of San Francisco, for assistance in
determining species; also to Dr. William Stimpson of Chicago,
for similar service in reference to the Buccinidæ.
1. Saxicava pholadis, Linn. var. arctica; Sitka, Bella Bella,
Kodiak, Ounalaska.
2. Mya arenaria, Linn.; Kodiak.
3. Schizothærus Nuttalli, Conr.; Sitka, Kodiak.
4. Machæra patula, Dixon; Kodiak, Ounalaska.
5. Macoma nasuta, Conr.; Kodiak.
6. Macoma inquinata, Desh.; Fort Simpson, Bella Bella, Kodiak,
Spruce Isl.
7. Macoma inconspicua, Br. & Sby.; Fort Simpson, Chilchat,
Kodiak, Spruce Isl.
8. Mera salmonea, Cpr.; Kodiak.
9. Standella planulata, Conr.; Kodiak, Ounalaska.
10. Tapes staminea, var. Petitii, Desh.; Fort Simpson, Chatham Sound.
11. Tapes staminea, var. ruderata, Desh.; Fort Simpson, Carter’s Bay,
Sitka, Bella Bella, Kodiak, Spruce Isl., Ounalaska.
12. Saxidomus Nuttalli, Conr.; Ft. Simpson, Sitka, Carter’s Bay,
Kodiak.
13. Cardium corbis, Mart.; Sitka, Bella Bella, Carter’s Bay, Kodiak.
14. Cardium blandum, Gould; Sitka, Kodiak, Ounalaska.
15. Serripes Grœnlandicus, Chem.; Kodiak, Ounalaska.
16. Kellia Laperousii, Desh.; Ounalaska.
17. Lasea rubra, Mont.; Sitka.
18. Mytilus edulis, Linn.; Ft. Simpson, Carter’s Bay, Bella Bella,
Sitka, Kodiak, Spruce Isl.
19. Modiola modiolus, Linn.; Sitka, Ounalaska.
20. Modiolaria lævigata, Gray; Ounalaska.
21. Axinæa septentrionalis, Midd.; Bella Bella.
22. Yoldia, n. s.?; Stomach of Halibut, Kodiak.
23. Acila castrensis, Hinds; Sitka.
24. Placunanomia macroschisma, Desh.; Kodiak, Ounalaska.
25. Helix Columbiana, Lea.; Sitka, Chilchat River, 59° 9´ N.
26. Helix Vancouverensis, Lea.; Sitka, V. Island.
27. Helix ruderata, Stud.; Ounalaska.
28. Helix fulva, Drap.; Sitka, Ounalaska.
29. Vitrina pellucida, Müll.?; Ounalaska.
30. Zua lubrica, Müll.; Sitka, Kodiak.
31. Siphonaria thersites, Cpr.; Fort Simpson.
32. Katherina tunicata, Wood; Sitka.
33. Tonicia lineata, Wood; Fort Simpson.
34. Tonicia submarmorea, Midd.; Fort Simpson.
35. Mopalia muscosa, Gould; Vancouver Island.
36. Mopalia Wossnessenskii, Midd.; Fort Simpson.
37. Mopalia Merckii, Midd.; Fort Simpson.
38. Acmæa patina, Esch.; Fort Simpson, Kodiak, Ounalaska, Sitka.
39. Acmæa pelta, Esch.; Sitka, Kodiak, Ounalaska.
40. Scurria mitra, Esch.; Sitka.
41. Glyphis aspera, Esch.; Sitka.
42. Haliotis Kamschatkana, Jonas; Sitka.
43. Calliostoma costatum, Mart.; Sitka.
44. Margarita pupilla, Gould; Ft. Simpson, Bella Bella, Sitka,
Ounalaska.
45. Margarita helicina, Mont.; Ounalaska.
46. Phorcus pulligo, Mart.; Sitka.
47. Crepidula navicelloides, Nutt.; Bella Bella.
48. Crepidula grandis, Midd.; Captain’s Harbor, Kodiak, Ounalaska.
49. Bittium filosum, Gould; Ft. Simpson, Carter’s Bay, Bella Bella,
Sitka.
50. Littorina scutulata, Gould; Sitka.
51. Littorina Sitkana, Phil.; Chatham S’nd, Carter’s Bay, Bella
Bella, Sitka, Kodiak.
52. Lacuna solidula, Loven.; Ounalaska.
53. Isapis fenestrata, Cpr.; Ounalaska.
54. Trichotropis cancellata, Hds.; Fort Simpson, Sitka.
55. Natica clausa, Brod. & Shy.; Ft. Simpson, Kodiak, Ounalaska.
56. Lunatia pallida, Brod. & Sby.; Captain’s Harbor, Ounalaska.
57. Priene Oregonensis, Redf.; Ounalaska.
58. Olivella bœtica, Cpr.; Sitka.
59. Nassa mendica, Gould; Sitka.
60. Amycla gausapata, Gould; Ft. Simpson.
61. Amphissa corrugata, Rve.; Ft. Simpson, Carter’s Bay.
62. Purpura crispata, Chem.; Fort Simpson, Bella Bella, Lawson’s
Harbor, Carter’s Bay, Sitka.
63. Purpura canaliculata, Duel.; Chatham Sound, Carter’s Bay, Bella
Bella, Sitka, Kodiak, Spruce Isl., Ounalaska.
64. Purpura saxicola, Val.; Ounalaska.
65. Purpura saxicola var. fuscata, Fbs.; Fort Simpson, Carter’s Bay,
Bella Bella, Sitka.
66. Ocinebra interfossa, Cpr.; Carter’s Bay, Bella Bella, Sitka.
67. Cerastoma foliatum, Gmel.; Bella Bella, Sitka.
68. Trophon multicostatus, Esch.; Ounalaska.
69. Trophon orpheus, Gould; Sitka.
70. Chrysodomus dirus, Rve.; Chatham Sound, Ft. Simpson, Carter’s
Bay, Bella Bella, Sitka.
71. Chrysodomus liratus, Mart.; Chilchat, Kodiak, Ounalaska.
72. Buccinum glaciale, Linn.; Ounalaska.
73. Buccinum polare, Gray; Captain’s Harbor, Ounalaska.
74. [36]Buccinum cyancum, Brug.; Kodiak.
75. Volutharpa ampullacea, Midd.; Fort Simpson, Bella Bella, Sitka,
Kodiak, Ounalaska.
[36] In a note from Dr. Stimpson, he remarks in reference to
this species: it “has not, as far as I am aware, as yet been
reported from the Pacific.”
Mr. Bolander presented a paper by Mr. Lesquereux, entitled “A Catalogue
of the species of Mosses found up to the present time on the Northwest
coast of the United States of America, and especially in California,”
which was referred to the Publication Committee and ordered printed in
the Memoirs of the Academy.
Professor Whitney exhibited several of the maps in preparation at the
office of the State Geological Survey, and gave a somewhat detailed
account of the operation of the survey during the year 1866 and 1867, and
of the progress in the publication department of that work. The statement
made was in the main identical with that contained in the biennial
letter of the State Geologist to the Governor, published by order of the
Legislature then in session.
Dr. H. Gibbons exhibited a piece of pork erroneously supposed to contain
trichinæ; he believed the entozoa in question were really _Cysticerci_.
They have the appearance of soaked peas, and are not injurious when
cooked.
Mr. R. L. Harris mentioned the fact that the railroad surveys conducted
by himself, for connecting Vallejo and Sacramento, indicated that the
latter place was not so much above the sea level as had generally been
assumed from barometrical observations, and he believed that the top of
the present levee at Sacramento was about twenty-one feet above mean high
tide at Vallejo, instead of fifty-six, as previously supposed. If this
was true, then the lowlands in the vicinity of Sacramento were in fact,
only about one and a half feet above the sea level. The surveys of the
coming season would probably enable him to fix this important point with
accuracy.
Dr. Gibbons suggested that if the Tule lands in the Sacramento and San
Joaquin Valleys were permitted to undergo the natural processes of growth
and decay, instead of being annually burned over, the land in question
might in time become sufficiently elevated to be inhabited.
Mr. Goodale, who had recently visited Russian America, exhibited a number
of implements and weapons of the natives of that region, and gave an
account of their use. He also remarked on some of the topographical and
geological features of that country.
REGULAR MEETING, DECEMBER 16TH, 1867.
Vice President Ransom in the Chair.
Thirty-seven members present.
The following gentlemen were elected Resident Members: Messrs. William
Hamel, P. B. Cornwall, Horace D. Dunn and W. B. Rising.
Donations to the Cabinet: seven specimens of ores from Gregory Yale,
Esq., also, a series of samples in bottles, illustrating the chlorination
process of extracting gold from the sulphurets, by the same.
Mr. Goodyear read the following paper:
Salt Spring Valley and the adjacent region in Calaveras County.
BY W. A. GOODYEAR.
Having spent some time during the past summer in Copperopolis,
and the region lying west and northwest from it, I offer the
following observations respecting its topography and geology. I
will first notice the
TOPOGRAPHY.
For a general description of the topography, etc., of Calaveras
County, including the main features of the region in question,
reference may be made to Prof. J. D. Whitney’s Report upon the
Geology of California, Vol. I, p. 253. In addition, however,
to what is there stated, I will say that Copperopolis lies at
the _southwestern_ base of Bear Mountain, the summits of which
rise to an altitude of something more than 2,000 feet above the
sea. The Gopher Hills, also mentioned in the report, form a
well defined and connected, though subordinate range, lying to
the southwest of, and nearly parallel with the general course
of Bear Mountain. This range forms a prominent feature in the
topography of the region for a distance of at least fifteen
or eighteen miles southeasterly from the Calaveras river. Its
summits are probably 1,400 feet above the sea, and the lowest
break or gap within the distance named is that through which
Rock Creek finds its way to the plains below. The valley or
depression between the Gopher Hills and Bear Mountain, whose
average width is four to six miles, has received the name of
Salt Spring Valley. Its general altitude is little less than
1,000 feet above the sea, that of the town of Copperopolis
being nine hundred feet according to H. P. Handy’s survey of a
railroad route from Copperopolis to Stockton. I should mention
that for several miles northwesterly from Copperopolis, Bear
Mountain has an outlier along its southwestern base, in the
form of a low but tolerably well marked hilly ridge, between
which and the base of the mountain is a narrow but continuous
valley; and it is in this valley that the copper-bearing
belt of Copperopolis is found. Southwest of this outlier,
and for a distance of three or four miles northwesterly from
Copperopolis, Salt Spring Valley consists mainly of a region
of low hills, traversed by a net-work of steep and narrow
gulches. Farther northwest the surface of the valley for three
or four miles is more uniform, and here we find the nearly
level area of “Tower’s Ranch,” and the gently sloping basin of
the “Salt Spring Valley reservoir.” Beyond this, the country
is again hilly to the Calaveras river. Southeast and south of
Copperopolis, the surface is everywhere hilly. The slope of the
Gopher Hills towards the southwest is rapid until we reach the
low rolling country which forms the border of the San Joaquin
Valley.
Black Creek debouches from Bear Mountain a mile or so southeast
of Copperopolis, and flows to the Stanislaus. Littlejohn’s
Creek takes its rise in the hilly regions of the valley west of
Copperopolis, and flowing southwesterly, finds its way through
the hills into Rock Creek. The latter rises in Bear Mountain,
five or six miles northwesterly from Copperopolis, and flowing
southwest across Salt Spring Valley, breaks through the Gopher
Hills, and continues its course through the lower country to
French Camp Slough, a branch of the San Joaquin. All these
creeks become dry in the summer, though in winter they often
carry very large volumes of water. At the point where Rock
Creek breaks through the Gopher Hills is the substantial dam of
the Salt Spring Valley Reservoir.
GEOLOGY.
The strike and dip of the rocks are more or less variable;
but, so far as my observations extend in the region described,
they have everywhere the same general northwesterly trend
and high northeasterly dip which characterize so large a
portion of the gold-bearing slates of central California. The
strike is usually from N. 50° W. to N. 70° W., (magnetic) and
the dip from 50° northeast to vertical. I have seen no case
here of a decided southwesterly dip, nor of a low one to the
northeast. It is somewhat remarkable, by the way, that this
high northeasterly dip should be so general as it is in the
great mass of auriferous slates which forms the southwestern
flank of the Sierra Nevada. It is _towards_ the granite axis of
the chain, instead of _from_ it, as would seem more natural.
The causes of this are by no means as yet fully explained.
It is a circumstance, however, which would lose none of its
interest in the future, if, as certain facts mentioned in the
Geological Report, Vol. I, p. 286, might possibly seem to
indicate, further explorations should prove it to be in general
a great inversion of the strata—their upper portions having
been “forced back by immense pressure from above, producing a
condition of things similar to that so often observed in the
Alps, which is known as the ‘fan structure,’ and has so much
perplexed geologists.” When we take into account the enormous
denudation, amounting to thousands of feet in perpendicular
depth, which is known to have taken place in the Sierras
within the most recent geological periods, and the whole of
which, in this case, must also have belonged to the inverted
portion of the strata—unless indeed the inversion were produced
by a peculiar sliding and bending of the strata by their
own weight, the upper flexure having been since entirely
removed—and when, in addition to this we consider the hundreds
of miles in length, and the great thickness of the strata in
question, we can perhaps begin to appreciate the magnitude of
the movements and forces which would be involved in producing
such an effect. It would indeed, if true, be a striking
illustration of the grandeur of the scale upon which many
of the physical features of this country have been cast, as
compared with those of other and better known regions. But it
is hardly worth while to speculate further upon probabilities
like this in the present state of our knowledge, and I return
to my subject.
In Salt Spring Valley, the rocks consist almost entirely
of slates, with little variety of character, generally
thin-bedded, fine-grained and argillaceous, sometimes magnesian
or chloritic, and often splitting with facility into very thin
sheets. The thinnest bedded varieties are usually fragile,
and the structure is often wavy; but sometimes the cleavage
is regular and thin enough, and the rock possesses sufficient
strength to furnish a tolerable material for roofing purposes;
although no attempts have been made, so far as I know, to
thus apply it;—and, in fact, the expense attendant upon its
excavation and transportation would preclude any extensive use
of it, even if its quality were unsurpassed, which it is not.
The earthy covering of the rocks throughout the valley is
usually very shallow and the soil poor, (Tower’s ranch is,
however, an exception) and in many places the thin sharp edges
of the slates project in such a way as to form an exceedingly
jagged surface, though the projections are low, generally not
exceeding two or three feet in height. Much of the surface is
strewn with float quartz, usually in the shape of small but
partially rounded pebbles. Quartz veins of small or moderate
size, parallel with the stratification, are not uncommon. Iron
pyrites is of frequent occurrence, with a little gold in the
quartz. Some of the veins have been more or less worked, but
none of them to any great extent. About three or four miles
westerly from Copperopolis, in the hilly portion of the valley,
is a ten-stamp quartz mill, and a short distance from this,
on Littlejohn’s Creek, is the site of an older one, which was
burned down. Neither of these mills ever yielded much profit,
so far as I can learn, nor does the present one seem likely to
do so.
Several of the gulches in this vicinity are said to have
yielded gold enough in the past to pay for working, although
the diggings were not rich or extensive. It is stated also that
some years since, in one of these gulches, a quartz boulder
was found, weighing about one hundred pounds, which yielded
between two and three thousand dollars’ worth of gold. There
are three or four quartz veins near here, from which more or
less rock has been crushed. Portions of the rock from one of
these veins, the Winnemucca, a prettily-shaped vein of three
to four feet in thickness, are very cellular in structure, and
some of it shows fine gold quite freely to the naked eye. The
metal however, must be very irregular in its distribution, or
the ore would have paid better in the mill than the three or
four dollars per ton which I am told it yielded; and in fact,
the general character of the float quartz of the region, when
taken in connection with the probable origin of the valley
itself, and the fact that no important placer “diggings” have
been found here, does not seem to favor the probability that
these quartz veins will ever prove of much value. Between the
present mill and the site of the old one, as well as certain
other localities in the valley, are springs containing various
alkaline salts, from which the name “Salt Spring Valley” is
derived.
Accompanying the copper formation of Copperopolis, and just
west of it, is an immense body of serpentine, lying parallel
with the general stratification of the slates, and traceable
for miles along the valley by the openings made in it in the
workings for copper. Opposite a point 1,000 or 1,200 feet
northwest of the upper shaft of the Keystone claim, but on
the southwest flank of the outlier of Bear Mountain, already
noticed, is another heavy mass of serpentine. How far this
extends in a northwest and a southeast direction I do not know,
as I have not followed its line of outcrop, but it is certainly
not less than 1,000 feet in length.
The lithological character of the Gopher Hills is entirely
different from that of Salt Spring Valley. They consist mainly
of a pretty hard and tough, more or less coarsely crystalline,
and dark-colored hornblendic or pyroxenic rock, which is
evidently metamorphic, probably of a grit or sandstone. Epidote
is not uncommon in this rock, and calcite is occasionally
found, though rare. Through most of this region the original
stratification has been largely obscured, or nearly
obliterated. Its general course, however, can still be traced
without difficulty in the more or less elongated and flattened
form, and the general trend which the rocky outcrops frequently
assume when viewed from a little distance.
The texture of the rock varies considerably. In general it
is rather coarsely crystalline; but not unfrequently it is
much finer, or even compact; sometimes it is jointed. At
one locality, in particular, (“Goodwin’s,” or “Sheep Ranch”
Gulch) I noticed this jointed structure so well developed
that a compact and very tough, almost imperishable rock could
be quarried with facility, if desired, in nearly rectangular
blocks and slabs.
It is not uncommon to find among these hills those peculiar
holes in the rock which were hollowed out and used by the
Indians as mortars in which to grind their food. I observed
a number of similar holes in the hard rock, precisely in the
bed of Rock Creek, in the ravine a short distance below the
dam of the Salt Spring Valley Reservoir. It may be a question
here, whether they owe their origin to the Indians or to the
action of the stream, though from the peculiar deep and narrow
form, I am inclined to ascribe them to the former. Heavy
masses of flinty rock or hornstone also occur, particularly
upon the southwest flanks of the range. This rock usually
exhibits a much more distinct bedding than the ordinary mass
of the hills. Its stratification is often perfectly regular,
and sometimes the layers are beautifully thin and delicate.
There is a very heavy outcrop of this finely banded rock in
the ravine a short distance below the dam at Rock Creek.
Higher up the hill, upon the road known as “Black’s Grade,”
another outcrop of the same formation has been cut across
in building the road, and here a portion of the same flinty
rock is thickly filled with _fossils_, which appear to belong
either to some species of crinoids or fucoids, though the
structure is too much obliterated, and the specimens too much
distorted to admit of definite recognition. They are apparently
flattened in a direction parallel with the banding of the
rock. From the general mode of occurrence of this hornstone,
and from the frequent sharp and distinct lines of demarcation
between it and the adjacent hornblendic rock, it might be
inferred that the former traversed the latter as veins, and
the delicate banding of the rock, although parallel to the
general stratification of the country, would not preclude
such an assumption. But the fossils speak decidedly against
it, and it is probable that the hornstone is a metamorphic
form of fine sedimentary deposits, and that the banding is
the result of the original stratification. Quartz veins occur
here occasionally, and some of them at least are auriferous,
though I know of none having been worked with profit hitherto.
It is not improbable, however, that some of them may be found
remunerative in the future, since many of the gulches among
the hills here, in the early days of mining, were rich in
placer gold. The degree of metamorphism throughout these
hills has been very high; but I have seen no evidence of any
direct igneous action—at least no rock that I could identify
as eruptive, with the single exception, perhaps, of a small
and apparently completely isolated body of well characterized
_granite_, which occurs near the base of the Gopher Range, and
between its highly metamorphosed rocks and the San Joaquin
Valley, which is overlaid with tertiary and other recent
formations. The occurrence of this patch of granite here,
isolated as it seems from any other similar rock, is certainly
a point of much interest; but I have not been able to study its
relations. Its stratigraphical and topographical position is
similar to that of the Folsom granite, and it may be connected
with it in origin. If it should hereafter appear that there
is a well characterized, though more or less interrupted line
of granitic outcrops traceable throughout central California,
along the lower foothills of the mountains, and _west_ of
the great belt of auriferous slates, it would have a most
important bearing upon the theory of the general structure of
the Sierra Nevada. The existence of such a line, indeed, might
point to a very different, and perhaps more probable, _modus
operandi_ than that already suggested, by which the auriferous
slates themselves may have reached their present position, and
received their easterly dip.
One of the most interesting points connected with the geology
of the Gopher Hills, is the auriferous belt in which occurs the
“Quail Hill” Mine, and of which I shall speak further presently.
Of the geology of Bear Mountain I know but little, having
crossed it by but a single route. Where I have seen it,
however, it consists largely of a similar rock to that which
forms the mass of the Gopher Hills. Chromic iron is said to
occur in considerable quantity at a certain locality in Bear
Mountain, the exact whereabouts of which I could not learn. The
slates of the valley extend, in general, completely up to the
base of the Gopher and Bear Mountain ranges on either side,
and sometimes a short distance up their flanks; but here the
transition to the harder crystalline rock is usually quick and
well marked.
Salt Spring Valley probably owes its existence, as such,
entirely to inequality of denudation; the comparatively friable
slates yielding much more readily to mechanical action than the
harder and more highly metamorphosed rock on either side, which
has thus been left in the form of mountain ridges, projecting
many hundreds of feet above the adjacent region, while the
intervening and surrounding rock has been swept away to the
plains below.
A partial description of the copper mines of Copperopolis
will be found in the “Geology of California,” Vol. I, pp.
254-257. The depth of the main shaft in the “Union” is now
stated to be a little over five hundred feet, and the greatest
depth reached in the “Keystone,” is said to be five hundred
and sixty feet. All the deposits of ore here worked lie
parallel with the strike and dip of the inclosing strata.
The great ore mass of the “Union” Mine forks or divides into
two branches towards the northwest; and at the lowest depth
now reached, its width or thickness, after having reached a
maximum, is again diminishing. In the “Keystone” Mine there
have been two separate and nearly parallel bodies of ore
worked to a considerable extent, and a third one was struck
last spring previous to the suspension of work in the mine.
The two main bodies of ore in this mine have “pinched out” or
disappeared in various directions in their lines of strike
and dip. They seem to have an irregular lenticular form, and
together with the great mass of the “Union” appear to lie in
what are called “shoots,” which pitch at an angle of 50° or
60° in the direction of the strike towards the northwest. The
northwesterly prolongation of the strike of the great “Union”
deposit does not coincide with either of the “Keystone”
deposits, but passes east of them. There have been other and
smaller deposits in the “Union” ground, more or less worked,
lying west of the main body, some of which may possibly connect
with the “Keystone” shoots, though the best information I
could obtain leads me to think otherwise, and that they were
probably isolated lenticular masses. The mass of the great
deposit in the “Union” Mine consists of an intimate mixture of
chalcopyrite and iron pyrites, containing on an average sixteen
to seventeen per cent. of copper. Well defined selvages are not
to be seen at Copperopolis, and the country rock is impregnated
in all directions, sometimes to a considerable distance from
the purer ore, with more or less finely disseminated copper and
iron pyrites. In Europe it would pay to crush and work much of
the wall rock itself for the copper which it contains; but here
it is entirely worthless, as even ten to twelve per cent. ore
is not worth mining and shipping at present prices.
It will be seen that the more recent and deeper developements
in the Copperopolis mines have only served to confirm the
opinion expressed two years ago by the State Geologist (Geol.
Vol. I, p. 225) that “the deposits of copper ore in this
region, like nearly all the others in California, do not
appear to be included in regular fissure veins, but rather to
form _independent masses_ [the italics are mine] lying in the
direction of the strike of the inclosing rocks, and dipping
with them.” It seems, further, that they are here arranged
in some sort _en échelon_. There is no evidence whatever of
the existence here of a regular and continuous vein of copper
ore, stretching for miles through the country, as some have
supposed. (See Ross Browne’s Report, p. 144.)
The finding of “copper indications,” _i.e._, of small and
isolated bodies of ore, distributed with some constancy
through a narrow belt of country, for no matter how many
miles in length, is anything but conclusive evidence of the
existence beneath of a _regular vein_ of corresponding length
(which, by the way, if it existed, would be an anomaly in the
mining world)—especially when all the developments of the
most extensive workings hitherto made point so decidedly and
strongly to the opinion that there is no _true vein_ at all.
Such “indications” are however evidences, so far as they go
(and they go a good way in this direction) of the probable
existence of other large bodies of ore distributed here and
there along the belt in question. It is not improbable that
such may be found in the future, and it would not be strange
even if some of them should surpass in magnitude and value the
great deposit of the “Union,” which has already yielded such
enormous quantities of copper, and is yet far from being worked
out.
A description of the auriferous deposit of Quail Hill, in
the Gopher Range, together with a similar one at Whisky Hill
(called also the “Harpending Mine”) in Placer County, by
Prof. B. Silliman, was read before the California Academy of
Natural Sciences, at their meeting of April 15th, 1867, and
will be found in their published “Proceedings,” Vol. III, pp.
349-351. This paper describes well the particular deposits in
question, as well as the general appearance and character of
the formation in which they occur. Such deposits, however, are
not confined to one or two localities; but there are other
points in Calaveras County at which gold is known to exist in
considerable quantity, and with similar mode of occurrence.
Among these I may mention Quail Hill No. 2, near the Napoleon
Copper Mine, two or three miles southeast of Quail Hill No. 1,
and the “Plymouth Rock,” or “Austin and Hathaway” claim, at
Rich Gulch, near the Calaveras River. Moreover, the geological
causes and the peculiar chemical decomposition of the rock,
which have been involved in the formation of the deposits in
question, are by no means confined to the localities where
gold is known to occur. On the contrary, they may be traced
with considerable constancy through a narrow belt of country
along the southwest flank of the Gopher Hills, and stretching
from the Calaveras River southeast for a distance of at least
fifteen miles, and perhaps farther. Towards the northwest,
the same belt crosses the Calaveras; but how much farther it
extends in this direction I have no present means of knowing.
It is not unlikely that a similar formation may be found to
exist, here and there at least, in the same general line of
strike, nearly parallel with the stratification of the country,
through Amador and El Dorado Counties to Placer, and perhaps
beyond. The possibility of this at least is worth remembering.
Throughout this belt, in the Gopher Range, surface cuts and
shafts, of greater or less depth, made and sunk in prospecting
for copper, are of frequent occurrence. In fact, this is the
same belt that has been so often mentioned as “the second
important copper-bearing belt of Calaveras County,” and located
some six or seven miles southwest of the main copper belt
of Copperopolis. The “importance” of this belt, on account
of the copper ores which it contains, has been most grossly
exaggerated. An amusing illustration of this fact is to be
seen in a “map of the copper mines in Calaveras County,”
published a few years since, which represents the whole region
in question as literally covered for miles with highly colored
“locations” or “copper claims,” the whole of which, with
few exceptions—and these due not to copper but to gold—have
served no further end than that of rendering their locators
and owners sadder and wiser men. At one locality, indeed, viz,
the “Napoleon Mine,” a body of copper ore was found which in
many countries would have been remunerative, and was worked
to a considerable extent; but the working here was attended
only with loss, and was some time since entirely discontinued.
It should be remembered, however, in speaking of the copper
mines of California, that not only have they had to contend
with the general ignorance of copper mining, and especially
of copper metallurgy which has existed throughout the State,
and with extremely high prices for labor and transportation;
but also that, for a year or two past, the largely increased
supply of ore from the mines of Chili in South America, and
elsewhere—together with the diminished demand and consequent
low price for metallic copper, reacting with increased effect
upon the value of the ore—have told with crushing weight
even upon the best mines. There are certainly not more than
one or two, perhaps not even a single deposit of copper ore
in the known world, which surpasses or equals, in magnitude
and intrinsic richness combined, that of the “Union” Mine of
Copperopolis; and yet it is said that even the “Union” itself,
which is the only mine now active at Copperopolis, is hardly
more than paying expenses at present rates. So far then as my
observations extend, there is simply nothing whatever in this
“second copper belt” which can for some time to come justify
the expenditure of money in searching for copper here; though
it is not impossible that, besides the “Napoleon” Mine, other
deposits of ore may exist within the belt, which at some future
time, and under more favorable circumstances of labor, fuel,
and transportation, may become of value for the copper which
they contain.
It has been already remarked that the zone or belt of surface
decomposition in which the “Quail Hill” and other similar mines
occur, may be traced with considerable constancy for at least
fifteen or eighteen miles, and that it is not improbable that
it is much longer than this. We cannot, however, infer from
our present knowledge that the decomposed or “calico” rock is
continuous throughout the belt, or even for any considerable
portion of its length. On the contrary, its distribution
within the belt appears capricious and local, _i.e._, it
seems to occur in more or less detached and isolated masses,
which vary largely in form and size, and are irregular and
indefinite in outline; so that little more can be predicated
of their occurrence in general, than that they are mostly
confined within a comparatively narrow belt, and that their
longest dimension exhibits a general tendency to approximate
parallelism with the axis of the belt, and the stratification
of the inclosing country. Sometimes, as for instance, along the
northeastern side of the Quail Hill formation, this tendency is
so strongly developed, and the passage from the decomposed to
the undecomposed rock is so rapid, as to form for some little
distance a tolerably straight and well defined “wall” or line
of demarcation, parallel, or nearly so, with the stratification
of the country. But the change or passage from the decomposed
or “calico” rock to the surrounding undecomposed country,
though sometimes rapid is always gradual, so far as I have
seen; and though we cannot yet speak much from underground
explorations, the surface appearances throughout the country
would indicate decidedly that so regular a line of demarcation
as this at Quail Hill is the exception, and not the rule.
The southwestern limit of the decomposed mass of Quail Hill
has been found at several points; but here the change from
the decomposed to the undecomposed rock is not so rapid; and
though the explorations here, being shallow and limited, are
insufficient to determine this point with certainty, it is
not probable that any such regularity of demarcation exists
here as upon the opposite side. Most of the “calico rock”
of this belt still retains distinctly the structure of the
undecomposed rock from which it was formed. The crystalline
hornblendic rock is thus seen to have been largely altered by
the decomposing agency, and even the hornstone, which lay in
its track, seems to have been more or less affected by it. The
decomposition has been purely an oxidation, accompanied by such
mechanical and chemical changes as filtering mineral waters
might produce. It is probably superficial, both in origin and
character, extending to no great depth, although the main level
at Quail Hill is nearly one hundred and twenty feet beneath the
summit of the hill, and the decomposition of most of the rock
at this depth, so far as exploration has gone, is as perfect
as at any higher level. It is certainly long subsequent in
date to the metamorphism of the surrounding country, and is
unquestionably largely due to the action of the products of the
oxidation of metallic sulphurets (chiefly those of iron and
copper) which were originally distributed through the rock. At
the same time it is not easy to account for the whole of it
in this way alone, since at certain localities undecomposed
sulphurets are seen near the surface, and in rock which is
apparently much more permeable to atmospheric influences than
was much of that which has been more deeply decomposed; and
again, much of the decomposed rock, though retaining well its
original structure, shows far too little traces of sulphurets
to readily account for so general and thorough a decomposition
as has taken place. It is all indeed more or less colored by
oxide of iron, but much of it is not deeply colored, and the
undecomposed hornblendic rock itself, in the absence of all
sulphurets, contains sufficient iron in the state of protoxide
to impart a strong coloring when the rock is decomposed and
the iron passes to the state of sesquioxide. Much of the iron
originally present has undoubtedly been removed in a soluble
form, as sulphate, etc. But in rock which preserves its
original structure, as well as most of this does, pyrites, if
originally present, would have left traces of its existence in
the form of casts or cavities in the decomposed mass, which
might or might not have been filled with ferric oxide or other
matter. In certain localities the decomposed rock is in fact
filled with such cavities, often cubical in form, attesting the
former presence of large quantities of disseminated sulphurets.
But in other localities they are few and far between, and here
accordingly the decomposition can hardly be supposed to have
been due to the local presence of sulphurets alone.
The exact methods by which the general and local decomposition
has been effected, and those by which the rock was originally
impregnated with metallic ores—as well as the manner in which
certain substances, as barytes, now found as sulphate, and
true porphyry, now found as kaoline or lithomarge, have found
their present situation in the belt in question—all these would
possess both interest and importance in a high degree, could
they be more definitely known. Such questions, however, cannot
be answered with certainty, and their discussion here would
lead us too far into the doubtful realm of chemical geology.
But whatever may have been the agencies at work, it is evident
that there is nothing in all this to remind us of a true vein
formation. It appears that the zone in question is neither a
vein, nor generally speaking a system of veins. On the other
hand, it possesses emphatically in general the characteristics
of what the Germans style an impregnation—an impregnation
indeed which exhibits a certain regularity as being mostly
confined within a narrow zone, and stretching through a
considerable extent of country, but which within these limits
shows the greatest irregularity of form, and much variety of
character. Veins of quartz occur here and there within the
belt; but they are not more frequent here than elsewhere, and
their occurrence has probably little or no direct connection
with the peculiar character of the belt itself. There is
very little that deserves the name of quartz at Quail Hill,
though much of the surface rock is pretty highly silicious in
character.
The impregnation of the rock with metallic sulphurets,
particularly with sulphurets containing copper, has in certain
localities been sufficiently powerful and concentrated to
assume, in greater or less degree, the characteristics of
segregated veins of limited extent. This has been the case
at the Napoleon mine, and also at Quail Hill, where there
is, or was, a band of oxidized ores of copper traversing the
decomposed rock in a direction parallel with the general
stratification. This band consisted chiefly of the green and
blue carbonates of copper, mingled with ferruginous and earthy
matter, and accompanied by barytes. The last named mineral, so
common a veinstone in other parts of the world, but hitherto
so rare in California, occurs here in considerable quantity.
Its form is granular compact, sometimes quite pure, but usually
contaminated and intermingled with other matters. Crystallized
specimens of it have not been found here to my knowledge. It is
hardly probable that the barytes itself contains either gold
or silver; yet it certainly occurs here in the most intimate
contact with both, as I have seen respectable particles of
gold in place upon the immediate surface of compact specimens
of barytes—and a sample of heavy concentrated barytic sand
from the tailings of the mill, of sufficient fineness to pass
through a sieve of one hundred holes to the linear inch,
yielded to the assay over eleven dollars per ton in gold and
silver.
The thickness of the copper band varied from one to three or
four feet. Its outlines were indefinite, and its original
characteristics of form, etc., much obscured by the complete
decomposition both of itself and the surrounding rock. It was
without doubt originally a segregated mass of sulphurets;
and though it seems now to have nearly or quite run out and
disappeared, it may be found to come in again as such, in
depth, unaltered below the line of surface decomposition.
Other bands of similar character may perhaps exist in the
yet undeveloped portions of the mine. But the great mass
of decomposed material which forms Quail Hill as a whole,
retaining as it does to so great an extent the original
structure of the country rock from which it was formed, can in
no proper sense be called a vein; although its extent, when
considered as a repository of the precious metals, is something
far transcending the size of ordinary veins.
The gold and silver of these formations which have recently
attracted so much attention, and have become the object
of extensive mining operations at Quail Hill, seem to be
distributed at the latter place, to a greater or less extent,
throughout the whole mass of the decomposed rock. The surface
earth of the hill, also, everywhere contains gold, which may be
discovered by washing it in the pan; but this ceases to be the
case on the hillsides as soon as the limits of the decomposed
rock are passed. Some of the gold, as stated by Prof. Silliman
in his communication to the California Academy, already
referred to, is quite coarse; but much of it is exceedingly
fine and difficult to save in the mill. It is a noticeable
fact in the distribution of the precious metals at Quail Hill,
that the cupreous ores and the material in their vicinity have
hitherto been found to be always rich in gold and silver, and
to contain chiefly, if not exclusively, the coarsest gold.
The distribution of the gold at Quail Hill is not uniform, the
more slaty and ferruginous portion of the decomposed rock being
generally the richest in ore, while the compact porphyritic
kaoline contains but traces of gold, if any, and some of the
other and more compact rock is comparatively poor. The original
distribution of the sulphurets here seems also to have followed
approximately the same law—the kaoline containing in general
but little trace of their existence, while the more slaty rock
is often full of their cavities. Hematite, as well as the
hydrated sesquioxide of iron, occurs here in small quantities;
and a curious point in this connection is the fact that, while
much of the best ore is very highly charged with the hydrated
sesquioxide, the hematite has been found hitherto to contain
little or no gold. The origin of the decomposed porphyry
at Quail Hill is a point of much interest, and it may be a
question whether it is not the remnant of an intrusive igneous
dyke. The arguments in favor of this supposition consist in
the entire dissimilarity in character and structure between
it and the surrounding material, as well as in the rarity of
porphyry in the region round about. In fact, I have nowhere
else in this portion of the country seen anything deserving of
the name, while the whole texture and appearance of this mass
at Quail Hill are precisely such as would have resulted from
the decomposition in place of a true feldspathic porphyry.
But however strongly these facts may seem to argue in favor
of an igneous origin, it is not easy to reconcile such a
supposition with its mode of occurrence here. Other masses of
similar character may exist within the hill; but so far as
existing developments have cut or uncovered the one of which
I speak, the indications are that it is irregular in outline,
quite limited in extent, and of approximate lenticular shape.
Moreover, in certain places, it seems to pass gradually
into the eastern country rock, without any distinct line of
demarcation, the change in the texture of the rock being
even more gradual than the passage from the decomposed to
undecomposed material. At certain points, but a few feet from
the eastern “wall,” the kaoline is as perfectly porphyritic in
its texture and appearance as in any portion of the mass, while
between the two is every grade of passage from the one to the
other—the country rock being neither distinctly porphyritic in
texture, nor chiefly feldspathic in composition. I am strongly
inclined to think, therefore, in spite of its peculiar and
distinctive character, that this porphyritic mass is but a
local result of the metamorphism of sedimentary strata, which,
in many portions of this region, seems to have been as varied
in character as it has been high in degree.
The degradation of such formations as this at Quail Hill, has
undoubtedly furnished some of the placer gold of the region;
but the evidence does not by any means justify us in supposing
that it has furnished the whole of it. Gopher Gulch, which runs
at the foot of Quail Hill, and its branches, for a mile above
this point, or nearly to the summit of the Gopher Range, and
hundreds of feet above the level of the Quail Hill formation,
were in early days rich in placer gold, much of which was very
coarse. Other gulches in the vicinity have also furnished more
or less gold high up towards the summit of the range. Moreover,
the quartz veins, which here and there occur in the hard
metamorphic rock, are known, some of them at least, to contain
gold, and such have probably played their part in the formation
of the placers.
I have already mentioned the fact of the prominent association
of the precious metals with ores of copper at the Quail Hill
mine; but this fact derives still further interest from what
follows. As far as my observations have extended in Calaveras
County, and also at Whisky Hill, in Placer County, wherever
gold and silver have yet been found in paying quantities in the
decomposed rock formation, there also, or close at hand, are
found the oxidized ores of copper, carbonates and silicates;
and conversely, I have nowhere seen oxidized ores of copper
in this decomposed rock which were not, comparatively at
least, rich in gold and silver. It is true that sufficient
developments have not yet been made to enable us to state
whether this is the general fact or not. It is possible
that the association of these ores may be to a certain
extent accidental; but it is not unlikely that it may be
otherwise;—and at all events this is a point well worthy of
attention and further investigation.
As this finishes my remarks upon the “calico rock” formation. I
will close by simply mentioning a point relating to the lower
country of Calaveras County, that I have not yet seen publicly
noticed elsewhere. The low, rolling hills which form the
eastern border of the San Joaquin plain between the Stanislaus
and Calaveras Rivers, contain extensive beds of horizontally
stratified material, which is probably sedimentary-volcanic
in origin. The color of these beds is usually varying shades
of gray. They contain no pebbles, so far as I have seen; they
generally crumble easily, and resemble in appearance a friable
sandstone. But their grain or grit, which is pretty fine, is
also quite clean and sharp as well as hard, and rough-polishes
rapidly the hardest steel when rubbed upon it.
These beds are of considerable thickness, and cover many square
miles of country. Their stratification has evidently not been
disturbed since they were deposited, though they have been
largely eroded. The frequent flat tops of the hills, and the
level benches, which these beds have produced along their
sides, by irregularities of wear, impart a peculiar aspect to
the scenery.
Professor Silliman read the following:
On the Occurrence of Glauberite at Borax Lake, California.
BY B. SILLIMAN.
Glauberite, a species not before recognised as occurring in
North America occurs at Borax Lake, where it has lately been
obtained in blue clay, brought up from a depth of forty feet by
an artesian boring. No other crystallized, species was detected
in the masses of clay examined.
Glauberite is a sulphate of lime and soda, half an atom of
each base in combination with an atom of sulphuric acid. It
is usually associated with rock salt, as at Villa Rubia, in
New Castile, and also at Ausee, in Bavaria, and in the salt
mines of Vic, in France. In the Atacama desert in Peru, it is
associated with a fibrous borate of lime called Hagesine. Mr.
Stretch, the State Mineralogist of Nevada, in his catalogue
of minerals found in that State, mentions borate of lime
(Hagesine) as occurring in globular masses and in layers from
two to five inches thick, alternating with layers of salt in a
salt marsh in the Columbus mining District, Esmeralda County.
It is quite possible that a careful scrutiny would detect
glauberite also in this association so analagous to that of
Atacama.
Reference was also made to the occurrence of the species
laghassite detected by Prof. S. in 1864, at the little Salt
Lake near Rag Town in Nevada, as illustrating in an interesting
manner, the chemistry of these bodies of saline water. The
latter species is a hydrous, carbonate of lime and sodium,
while glauberite is a sulphate of the same bases. Both salts
undoubtedly result from the reaction of the respective elements
pre-existing in solution in the saline waters.
The crystals of glauberite from Borax Lake occur in very thin
flattened tables, derived apparently from the great extension
of the faces _O_ of the Monactinic prism.
Mr Bloomer read the following:
On the Scientific Name of the “Big Trees.”
BY H. G. BLOOMER, CURATOR OF BOTANY.
Early in 1853, specimens of the “Big Trees” were presented
to this Academy; Dr. Kellogg and other botanists, members of
the Academy, at once pronounced them to belong to the genus
_Taxodium_, to which the common “Redwood” of California was
referred at that time. Endlicher’s work upon the Coniferæ, in
which the genus _Sequoia_ (named after an Indian Chief) was
instituted, had not at that time reached us. Our California
Redwood, _Taxodium sempervirens_ was included in the new genus
of Endlicher. So then, the true scientific position of the
Big Trees was first determined by members of the California
Academy of Natural Sciences. At the time of the presentation
of these specimens, an English collector of plants and seeds,
Mr. William Lobb, saw them, and having experience enough to
know that they belonged to a species new to the gardeners,
immediately started for the grove and obtained cones, wood
and foliage, which he carried with him to England in the fall
of 1853. Dr. Lindley hastily described these as _Wellingtonia
gigantea_ in the _Gardener’s Chronicle_ for December 1853.
In the meantime Drs. Kellogg and Behr pursued their studies of
the great tree, and at length being convinced that there was no
generic difference between it and the _Taxodium sempervirens_
(now _Sequoia sempervirens_) instituted the species _Taxodium
giganteum_, described in the Proceedings of the Cal. Acad. Nat.
Sciences, May 7th, 1855, Vol. I, page 53.
Previous to this, however, Seemann, in Bonplandia, 3, p. 27,
January 15th, 1855, described it under the term of _Sequoia
Wellingtonia_. Mr. Seemann gives his reasons at length in the
Magazine of Natural History, 3d Series, Vol. 3, p. 164, for
discarding the genus _Wellingtonia_ of Lindley, and says:
“Dr. Torrey was undoubtedly the first who determined the true
systematic position of the tree.” Now this is an error, for Dr.
Torrey’s publication is dated in August, 1855; whereas Drs.
Kellogg and Behr’s appeared May 7th, 1855.
The principal thing to be determined in this matter now is, as
to the name and author, for these must accompany each other;
shall it be:
_Sequoia gigantea_ Endlicher, May, 1847;
_Wellingtonia gigantea_ Lindley, December, 1853;
_Sequoia Wellingtonia_ Seemann, January 15th, 1855;
_Taxodium giganteum_ Kellogg and Behr, May 7th, 1855; or
_Sequoia gigantea_ Torrey, August, 1855?
There are a number of other names made use of and referred to
by Seemann, Murray and others; but as they come to us without
the least scientific authority, they ought not to be considered.
Dr. Lindley’s genus falls to the ground almost by common
consent. I will refer here to a communication from Prof.
Brewer, late of the geological survey of this State. Before he
left San Francisco, he sent Dr. W. J. Hooker one of the large
photographs of the “Grizzly Giant,” one of the big trees in the
Mariposa grove; he had written to Prof. Brewer, asking about
“the Wellingtonia, Washingtonia, I care not what you call it.”
In Prof. Brewer’s answer, he told him that he (the Prof.) did
care what he called it, and also that it was not a new genus,
but a _Sequoia_. Dr. Hooker, in his answer to this, says: “I
heartily agree with you in all you say about the big tree; it
has now produced good fruit in our gardens, and is as true a
_Sequoia_ as can be, and should have no other name.” So here we
have high authority for discarding Lindley’s _Wellingtonia_.
Yet this only settles the question as to the generic term; Dr.
Hooker’s opinion thus far has only given us _Sequoia_.
The next claimant in point of priority is Dr. Seemann, who
rightly refers it to _Sequoia_, and adds the specific term
_Wellingtonia_, giving sufficient reasons for discarding
Endlicher’s specific term _gigantea_, as that was shown by
Hooker to be founded upon _Abies_ (Picea) _bracteata_.
In recent publications of American botanists, we find the term
_Sequoia gigantea_ of Torrey used to designate the species;
to show that this is not the true nomenclature, I need but
to say that Dr. Torrey never described it at all in any book
or proceedings. The reference is to the American Journal of
Science and Art, Vol. 18, p. 286, August, 1855, where it
says: “Dr. Torrey made to the American Association for the
Advancement of Science a communication in reference to the Big
Tree of California;” also Vol. 17, p. 443, but no description.
Now here is no sufficient ground for Dr. Torrey’s _Sequoia
gigantea_, for there is absolutely no description at all,
but a mere reference; and this reference is published three
months after Drs. Kellogg and Behr have described the tree as
_Taxodium giganteum_.
I think now that Endlicher’s, Lindley’s, and Torrey’s claims
have been refuted; the controversy is narrowed down as between
Seemann and Drs. Kellogg and Behr. By strict usage, and without
the usual courtesy of scientific men, the nomenclature of
the “Big Tree” should be _Sequoia Wellingtonia_ of Seemann.
But if courtesy is to be shown at all, it should be to those
students who are entitled to it; that Drs. Kellogg and Behr are
justly entitled to this honor, I cannot for one moment doubt.
Specimens of this gigantic tree were in their possession many
months before any other botanist had directed his attention to
the subject; studying indeed under every disadvantage, for our
botanical literature at that time was very meagre, not even
Endlicher’s work on the Coniferæ, in which was to be found the
then newly instituted _Sequoia_, to which was referred our
common _Taxodium sempervirens_ of Lambert, being available.
Had they access to this work they would have given us _Sequoia
gigantea_; mark, that this was three months before Torrey’s
reference.
They therefore are in truth and reality, if not technically,
the first scientific discoverers of the true position of the
great tree. The terms they used were _Taxodium giganteum_,
meaning by this that it was a congener with _Taxodium
sempervirens_, which it was.
If Seemann’s technical claims are set aside, then by courtesy
_Sequoia gigantea_ Kellogg and Behr, ought to be written as the
true name of the “Big Tree.”
For the advancement of science, we hope the final closing of
this and other questions pertaining to the Coniferæ of this
coast will be left to the able monographer of this order, Dr.
George Engelmann, of St. Louis, who is now in Europe, having
the notes and observations of recent botanists, and who will
there have access to all the literature and material necessary
to establish scientific accuracy and unity in this important
family of plants.
INDEX OF AUTHORS.—1863-1868.
AYRES, DR. W. O.—Remarks on Notorhynchus, etc., 15
On the Sacred Turtle of Japan, 16
BEHR, DR. H.—On Californian Lepidoptera, 84, 123, 163, 178, 279, 296
BLAKE, DR. J.—Infusoria from the moving sands near San Francisco, 35
On the Gradual Elevation of the Land in the vicinity of San
Francisco, 45
On Fœtus of Embiotocoid Fishes, 314, 371
BLAKE, PROF. W. P.—Gold from American River, 166
Fossils from Mare Island, 166
Fossils from Oregon Bar, 167
Fossils from Mariposa, 170
Oil Regions of Tulare Valley, 193
Sphene in the Sierra Nevada, 193
Iron Ore in Northern Arizona, 206
Gum of Sequoia gigantea, 234
Ammonites in Mariposa County, 235
Miscellaneous Notices, 289
Mineralogical Notices, 297
Fossil Fish from Nevada, 306
Fossil Saurians of California, 307, 361
Fossil Elephants Teeth, 325
Submerged Forests of Oregon, 339
Brown Coal of Oregon, 347
Analysis of Mt. Diablo Coal, 348
BLOOMER, H. G.—On the scientific names of the Big Trees, 399
BOLANDER, PROF. H. N.—Description of a new species of Melica, 4
Shrubs and Trees growing near San Francisco, 78, 296
Grasses of Arizona, 205
Remarks on Californian Trees, 225, 377
Botanical Collections of Prof. A. Wood, in 1866, 329
BREWER, PROF. W. H.—Plants growing in Hot Springs of California, 121
Explorations in Sierra Nevada, 170
Fossils of the Auriferous Slates, 198
BRUSH, PROF. G. J.—Analysis of Meteoric Iron from Arizona, 30
CANFIELD, DR. C. A.—Notes on Antilocapra Americana, 238
CARLETON, GEN. J. H.—On Meteoric Iron from Arizona, 33
CARPENTER, DR. P. P.—New Marine Shells of California, 155, 175, 207
CLAYTON, J. E.—Fossils from Nevada, 171
COOPER, DR. J. G.—On New or Rare Mollusca inhabiting California, 56
On a New Genus of Terrestrial Mollusca inhabiting California, 62
On New Genera and Species of Californian Fishes, 70, 93, 108
A New Californian Helix, etc., 259
A New Species of Pedipes, 294
West Coast Helicoid Land Shells, 331
CROFT, C. J.—The Grasses of Arizona, 205
DALL, W. H.—Memorial of T. Bridges, 236
Notes on Octopus punctatus, 243
Notes on Shells of Santa Cruz, etc., 258
New Subfamily of Mollusca, 264
On Shells of Monterey, 271
On Errors in Geography of California, 273
Letter from Alaska, 367
DANA, PROF. J. D.—On Crystallization of Brushite, 174
GABB, W. M.—A New Species of Virgularia from the Coast of
California, 120
Cretaceous Fossils from Sonora, Mexico, 153
Fossils from Mariposa, 172
Fossils from San Luis Obispo, 173
New Marine Shells from Coast of California, 182
Cretaceous Formation of California, 301
Geology of Peru, 359
GARRETT, ANDREW.—Descriptions of New Species of Fishes, 63, 103
GIBBONS, DR. H.—On Rains at San Francisco, 261
GOODYEAR, W. A.—On Salt Spring Valley, Calaveras County, 387
GRAY, PROF. ASA.—Descriptions of new Californian Plants, 101
HOFFMAN, C. F.—On Hetch-Hetchy Valley, 368
JACKSON, DR. C. T.—The Big Trees of Calaveras County, 204
KELLOGG, A., M.D.—Description of two New Species of Plants from
Nevada, 9
On two New Species of Collomia from Nevada Territory, 17
A New Genus and Species of Plant from Nev. Territory,
(Pterostephanus), 20
Descriptions of two New Plants, (Conyza, Collinsia.), 36
A New Species of Hosackia, 38
A New Species of Mentzelia, 40
Description of three New Plants, 42
A New Species of Allium, 54
A New Species of Alsine, 61
Thaspium cordatum and Epilobium obcordatum, 314
MOORE, G. E.—On Brushite, 167
NEWCOMB, DR. W.—New Species of Helix inhabiting California, 115
A New Species of Pedicularia, 121
New Species of Land Shells, 179
PEASE, W. H.—On an Atoll near the coast of Mexico, 200
PREISS, MAJ. E.—On Euphorbia prostrata as a remedy for Snake-Bites, 195
RAIMONDI, DON A.—On Geology of Peru, 359
RÉMOND, A.—Description of two New Species of Bivalve Shells from the
Tertiaries of Contra Costa County, 13
Description of two Species of Scutella, 13
Four New Species of fossil Echinodermata, 52
Geological Explorations in Mexico, 244
RICHTHOFEN, BARON F.—On Natural System of Volcanic Rocks, 356
ROWELL, REV. J.—Description of Gundlachia Californica, 21
On Pisidium angelicum, 353
SCUDDER, S. H.—Letter concerning Californian Butterflies, 47
SHARKEY, DR. J. M.—On fibrous Plants of Nicaragua, 401
SILLIMAN, PROF. B.—Gold and Silver of Whisky and Quail Hills, 349
Localities of Diamonds in California, 354
Localities of Tellurids in California, 378
Glauberite at Borax Lake, 399
STEARNS, R. E. C.—Shells of Baulines Bay, 275
Shells of Santa Barbara and San Diego, 283
Obituary of R. Kennicott, 298
Vitality of a Snail, 328
On Orthagoriscus analis, 341
On Helix Ayresiana, 341
Shells of Santa Barbara, etc., 343
Shells of Purissima, and Lobitas, 345
On Exhibition of Parhelia, 353
Shells of Bodega Bay, 382
Shells of Alaska, 384
TRASK, DR. J. B.—Earthquakes in California during 1863, 1864, 127
Earthquakes in California from 1800 to 1864, 131
Earthquakes in California during 1864, 190
Earthquakes in California during 1865, 239
WHITNEY, PROF. J. D.—On the inaccuracy of the Eighth Census, so far as
it relates to the Metallic and Mineral Statistics of the United
States, 6
Remarks on Japanese Minerals and Fossils, 15
On the Progress of the Geological Survey of California, 23
Analysis of Meteoric Iron, (Brush), 30, 34
On Meteoric Iron from Arizona, 48, 240
On Meteorites of Pacific Coast, 240
On Rémond’s Explorations in Northern Mexico, 243
On Geology of Nevada, 266
On Absence of Drift in California, 271
Human Skull from Calaveras County, 277
Tungstate of Lime and Copper, 287
Silurian Series of Nevada, 307
Tertiary Fossils of Nevada, 309
Triassic Fossils of Chili, 311
Liassic Fossils of Chili, 311
Tertiary Fossils of Chili, 311
Cretaceous Fossils of Chili, 311
Infusorial Deposits, 319
The Highest Mountain of North America, 325
On Coal of Webber Cañon, 341
On Salt from Muddy River, 341
On Ores from Comstock Lode, 342
On Geological Position of Coal, 356
On Fossil Tooth from Douglas Flat, 356
On Oreodon Jaw, 363
On Visit to Oregon, etc., 363
On Ores from Nevada and Mexico, 372
On Minerals of Pacific Coast, 372, 374
On Depression of Death Valley, 129, 376
On Maps of California, 386
WILLIAMSON, COL. R. S.—On the Height of Mount Hood, 364
On Depression of Death Valley, 129, 376
WILSON, JOHN.—Indian Relics from Chihuahua, 160
WOOD, PROF. A.—Ascent of Mount Hood, 292
Botanical Collections, 329
GENERAL INDEX.
PAGE.
Abies, 232
Acanthochites, 211
Acanthopleura, 211
Achatinella, 182
Acmæa, 213, 300
Æolis, 59
Allium, 54
Alsine, 61
Altitude of Sacramento, 386
American Satyrides, 165
Amiantis callosa, 286
Ammonites, 235, 289
Amphissa, 286
Amphithalamus, 218
Amycla, 159, 223
Anachis, 223
Analysis of Coal, 348
” of Salt, 348
” of Ores, 342
Angel Island, 348, 353
Antilocapra, 238
Antimoniate of Lead, 372
Aplodontia, 224
Aplopappus, 9
Aplysia, 57
Apocynum, 352
Apogon, 105
Arbutus, 232
Arenaria, 101
Argynnis, 84
Aristida, 205
Ascent of Mt. Hood, 292, 364
Aspidium, 129
Astarte, 209
Astragalus, 103
Astringent Gum, 234
Astrodapsis, 52
Astrophyton, 300
Ayresia, 73
Barometers, 327
Baulines Bay Shells, 275, 291
Bdellostoma, 295, 331
Belemnites, 173
Big Trees, 399
Binneya, 62
Botanical Collections, 329
Brown Coal, 347
Brushite, 167
Buccinum, 385
Calandrinia, 102
Calliostoma, 156, 186, 214
Cancellaria, 186
Carcharodon, 174
Cardium, 13, 154, 209
Carex, 38
Castanea, 231
Catalogue of Mosses, 386
Census, Eighth, 6
Ceratites, 167
Chætodon, 65
Cheilodactylus, 103
Chemnitzia, 154, 220
Chionobas, 163
Chironectes, 64, 107
Chioræra, 60
Chlorostoma, 286
Chromis, 160
Chrysallida, 219
Cinnabar, 298
Circe, 189
Clathurella, 184
Clypeaster, 53
Coal, Geology of, 356
” of Arizona, 122
” of Mexico, 251
” of Mt. Diablo, 348
” of Oregon, 347
” of Utah, 341
Cœcum, 215
Cœnonympha, 164
Collinsia, 36
Collomia, 17
Collonia, 175
Comstock Lode, 342
Conus, 174, 286
Conyza, 36
Cooperella, 208
Copper Glance, 297
Corbula, 207
Crenilabrus, 106
Crepidula, 385
Cretaceous Formation, 301
Crustacea, 313
Cupressus, 228
Curator’s Reports, 2, 99, 235, 237, 312
Cysticerci, 386
Cythna, 219
Danais, 84
Danaite, 297
Daphnella, 185
Dekaya, 70
Delphinula, 175
Dendronotus, 59
Depression of Death Valley, 129, 376
Diala, 218
Diamonds in California, 354
Diatomaceæ, 258, 320
Doris, 58, 346
Dosinia, 174
Drift Formation, 271
Earthquakes in China, 278
” in California, 127, 131, 190, 239
Echinarachnius, 53
Echinoderms, fossil, 52
Eighth Census, 6
Elephant’s Teeth, 325
Elevation of Land, 45
Emarginula, 188
Embiotocoids, 314, 371
Eocene formation, 301
Epilobium, 314
Esquimaux, 202
Ethalia, 215
Eulima, 221
Euphorbia, 195, 367
European Satyrides, 165
Excursion in Field, 348, 352
Exocœtus, 93
Exogyra, 154
Exploration of Alaska, 367, 377
Explosions under ground, 364
Family Limnæidæ, 264
Fenella, 217
Fibrous plants, 401
Field Excursions, 348, 352
Flabellina, 60
Fœtus of Fishes, 314
Fossils of Alaska, 367
” cretaceous, 301
” Elephant, 166, 171, 290, 325, 367
” Horse, 166, 171
” canine Tooth, 356
” Delphinidæ, 361
” in Gold Formations, 289
” from Mexico, 247, 249, 250, 252
” from Nevada, 266
” skull, 277, 291
” fish, 306
” bones, 307
” Saurians, 307
” Silurian, 307
” tertiary, 307
Fungi as Food, etc., 292
Gadinia, 188
Galerus, 215
Gastridium, 67
Geological Survey, 23, 170
Geology of Coal, 356
” of Mexico, 243
Geology of Peru, 359
Gibbonsia, 109
Gibbula, 158, 176, 214
Gillichthys, 109
Glaciers in Arizona, 162
Glauberite, 399
Globulus, 176
Gold of Whisky Hill, 349
” Quail Hill, 349
Grapta, 123
Gundlachia, 21
Hagesine, 399
Haliotis, 300, 361
Height of Mt. Hood, 294, 326, 363, 364
” Sacramento, 386
” Mountains, 326
Helices of Santa Cruz, 258, 260
Helicoid Land Shells, 331
Helix, 115, 179, 225, 258, 291, 328, 334, 384
Hepburn’s Shells, 283
Hetch-hetchy Valley, 368
Hosackia, 38
Hybrid Ducks, 324
” Haliotis, 361
Indian Hemp, 352
Infusoria, 35, 319
Iron Ore in Arizona, 206
Isapis, 217
Ischnochiton, 211
Jeffreysia, 209
Julis, 63
Junonia, 126
Kelloggia, 202
Kerargyrite, 297
Lagomys, 69
Land Shells of California, 331
Leda, 210
Leersia, 67
Leiostraca, 221
Lepidopleurus, 211
Lepton, 210
Leptonyx, 175, 286
Leptochiton, 212
Leptothyra, 286
Libocedrus, 228
Lilium, 202
Lima, 173
Limenitis, 127
Limnæidæ, 264
Linum, 42, 102
Lioconcha, 189
Liotia, 158
Litiopa, 219
Lycæna, 279
Macadamizing Rock, 327
Macoma, 208
Mangelia, 185, 383
Margarita, 158
Margaritana, 258
Mariposite, 380
Mastodon teeth, 291
Melica, 4
Melissa and Meridion, 258
Melitæa, 85
Mentzelia, 40
Mesalia, 216
Meteoric iron, 21, 30, 48
Meteoric shower, 300
Meteorites, 240
Mexican Cotton, 17, 19
Minerals of California, 372, 374
” Whisky Hill, 351
Mining, Ancient, 358, 362
Minolia, 157
Mirabilis, 10, 68
Mispickel, 8, 297
Monterey Shells, 271
Mopalia, 385
Morains in Arizona, 162
Mount Hood, 292, 326, 364
Mountain Barometers, 327
Muhlenbergia, 205
Murex, 185, 224
Myxodes, 108
Nacella, 213
Nassa, 223
Natica, 174
Native Copper, 297
Navarchus, 8, 58
Navea, 300, 346
Neaplysia, 57
Neithea, 154
Nemeobius, 178
Nereocystes, 324
Newcomb’s collection, 343
Northern drift, 271
Nostoc, 120
Notorhynchus, 15
Octopus, 243
Oenothera, 198
Officers elected, 3, 100, 177, 235, 312
Oil regions, 193
Opalia, 222
Ophisurus, 66, 98
Orcynus, 75
Ores from Nevada, 372
Orthagoriscus, 341
Ostrea, 13
Ovibos, 367
Oxide of Antimony, 372
Pachydesma, 286
Pallium, 174
Panicum, 121, 206
Parhelia, 353
Paspalum, 67
Peat Beds, 325
Pecten, 174
Pedicularia, 121
Pedipes, 294
Pentachæta, 197
Peru, Geology of, 359
Petricola, 310
Phaca, 103
Phidania, 60
Pholadidea, 310
Pholadomya, 173
Picea, 377, 401
Pinus, 204, 226, 296, 317, 353, 358, 370
Planorbis, 119
Pleuraphis, 205
Pleurotoma, 183
Plectodon, 207
Poa, 206
Polyporus, 292
Pomaulax, 286
Pompholyx, 264
Porites, 4
Pristiphora, 210
Proustite, 297
Psephis, 209
Pteroplatea, 112
Pterostephanus, 21
Ptychostylis, 187
Pulmonifera, 334
Puncturella, 214
Purpura, 4, 286
Pyrameis, 125
Quail Hill Minerals, 349
Quercus, 229, 296, 299, 370
Rains of San Francisco, 261
Red Crustaceans, 313
Rissoa, 217
Rissoina, 217
Rowellia, 188
Salt from Muddy River, 341
Salt Spring Valley, 387
Sarcodes, 202
Saturnia, 296
Satyrus, 164
Saxidomus, 174, 286
Scalaria, 221
Schinus, 273
Scintilla, 208
Scorpæna, 105
Scurria, 241
Scutella, 13
Semele, 208
Sequoia, 170, 204, 288, 363, 399
Sharks’ Teeth, 290
Shells of Alaska, 384
” of Baulines Bay, 275, 291
” of Bodega Bay, 382
” of California, 334, 361
” of Monterey, 271
” of Purissima, 345
” of S. Cruz I., 345
” of Sta. Barbara, 283, 343
” of San Diego, 283
” of land of West Coast, 334
Sierra Nevada Peaks, 170
Silene Dorrii, 44
Silkworms, 296
Silver leaf, 330
Silybum, 125
Skull from Calaveras, 277
Snail’s vitality, 328
Solariella, 156
Sphene in Granite, 193
Sphyræna, 203
Strategus, 8
Streptanthus, 101
Styliferina, 219
Submerged Forests, 339
Subterranean Explosions, 364
Succinea, 181
Surcula, 286
Taxodium, 399
Taxus, 229
Tellimya, 210
Tellurian Minerals, 378
Teredo, 11
Terrestrial Molluscs, 334
Thaspium, 314
Torreya, 229
Trachydermon, 212, 383
Tricuspis, 206
Trifolium, 102
Trigonia, 154
Triopa, 59
Trochiscus, 258, 275
Trophon, 224
Tsuga, 232
Tungstate of Silver and Copper, 287
Turbinolia, 154, 158
Turbo, 175
Turbonilla, 186
Turritella, 154, 174, 216
Twelve Mile House, 352
Urolophus, 95
Vitality of a Snail, 328
Vitis, 233
Vitrina, 334, 384
Volcanoes, Active, 368
Volutharpa, 385
Vanessa, 123
Viola, 101
Virgularia, 120
Washingtonia, 399
Wellingtonia, 399
West Coast Helicoids, 331
Whisky Hill Minerals, 351
Wood’s Collections, 329
Xylotrya, 11
Yoldia, 189
Zirphæa, 299
Zua, 384