ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 293 



were found the remains of what appeared to have been a fortifica- 

 tion. Near Henry's Lake, we found immense masses of obsidian 

 sandstone. In this vicinity, we observed a crater of two miles in 

 length by one-half a mile wide, called Sawtelle's Peak. To the 

 north of Henry's Lake is Reynolds' Pass ; to the west of the lake 

 is Red-rock Pass, one hundred feet above the basin. There are 

 many geysers throwing columns eight to ten feet high, and innu- 

 merable smaller geysers ; the " Old Faithful " 120 feet high, and 

 two to three feet in diameter ; the Grand Geyser is said to reach a 

 height of 300 feet — we saw it of a height of 200 feet, it shook the 

 ground severely ; at first, a loud pumping noise is heard, and after 

 some three to seven pulsations, the flow commences. We found a 

 lake, to which we gave the name of Lewis' Lake, in memory of 

 the great explorer whose name should be attached to Snake River ; 

 the general elevation of this lake region is from six to seven 

 thousand feet. At this elevation were found beds of river gravel, 

 showing that a river system formerly existed far above the present 

 level. The canon at the outlet of Lewis' Lake fully equals the 

 cafion of the Yellowstone, but without the picturesque coloring ; 

 here were evidences of external glacial action. 



Dr. Curtis remarked the occurrence of springs of a temperature 

 of ISO*"^ to 198° Fahrenheit. Animal life was found in water of 

 186*^. In August, we had to break the ice to obtain water for 

 washing. The number of geysers must be 10,000. " Old Faith- 

 ful " spouted every sixty-five minutes, and continued for seven 

 minutes. Three practical passes were found breaking through the 

 mountains, so low that a railroad could easily be built. 



Mr. Dall stated that the tusk and the accompanying bones, pre- 

 sented to the Academy this evening, were collected in the cele- 

 brated deposit on Elephant Point, Kotzebue Sound, by Capt. E. 

 E. Smith, of the Alaska Commercial Company's schooner Eustace. 



Previous to the Captain's visit, Mr. Dall had described the de- 

 posit to him, and urged the importance of examining the exact cir- 

 cumstances under which the bones occur, and the features of the 

 " ice-cliffs " of the locality, about which some conflicting testimony 

 had been given by the ofiicers of Kotzebue's Expedition, of Capt. 

 Beechey's party, and the officers of the Herald's voyage. The 

 locaUty, according to Captain Smith's account, is well represented 



