692 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



portunities for travel, lie was impressed with tlie importance of 

 interesting legislatures in geological surveys, and he took meas- 

 ures to enlist the government of Massachusetts in such work. 

 With this aim in mind he published a lengthy review of Olm- 

 sted's survey of North Carolina in the American Journal of Sci- 

 ence, in 1828. Near the close he says : " We wish now to ask the 

 intelligent legislator whether such a development of internal re- 

 sources as this report exhibits does not amply remunerate the 

 State of North Carolina for the comparatively trifling expense of 

 this survey ; and whether so great success . . . does not strongly 

 recommend that this example be followed by other States of the 

 Union." 



As the result of this and other efforts, the State of Massachu- 

 setts commissioned him to make a geological survey of her terri- 

 tory in 1830. Three years were spent in the explorations, and the 

 work was of such a high character that other States were induced 

 to follow the example of Massachusetts, and similar surveys were 

 organized in Tennessee, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Vir- 

 ginia, Maine, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Penn- 

 sylvania, Ohio, Delaware, Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, and 

 Georgia. The State of New York sought his advice in the or- 

 ganization of a survey, and followed his suggestions, particularly 

 in the division of the territory into four parts, and appointed 

 him as the geologist of the first district. He entered upon the 

 work, but after a few days of labor he found that he must neces- 

 sarily be separated from his family, much to his disinclination. 

 He also conceived the idea of urging a more thorough survey of 

 his own State; hence he resigned his commission and returned 

 home. The effort for a resurvey of Massachusetts was successful, 

 and he was recommissioned to do the work. The results appeared 

 in 1841 and 1844 the first a quarto report and the last the geo- 

 logical coloration of a map based upon Borden's Trigonometrical 

 Survey. 



Independently of the survey came the discovery of fossil foot- 

 marks. As far back as 1800 Pliny Moody had observed trifid 

 markings upon sandstone which he called the tracks of birds. In 

 1835 Mr. W. W. Draper, of Greenfield, Mass., noticed similar im- 

 pressions, and drew the same conclusions. Mr. Draper remarked 

 upon them to Dexter Marsh and Colonel William Wilson, who in 

 turn consulted Dr. James Deane, who wrote to Professors Silliman 

 and Hitchcock. All agreed to refer the investigation to Prof. 

 Hitchcock, who propounded the fundamental principles of ich- 

 nology in the January number of the American Journal of Sci- 

 ences for 183G. The announcement was not favorably received 

 by many geologists, while the general public gave expression to 

 their views by the employment of ridicule. The subject was re- 



