75 

 flint and were of a dark color but they contained asphaltum in them. 

 Before I took hold of the California work 1 was in the oljiice of a 

 freind of mine in New York and he salci in conversation that Prof. 

 Silliman, whom I knew, had been in that day and would start for Ca- 

 lifornia at once to search out the petroleum there. For he was sure 

 that paying petroleum was to be found in California. I was soon after 

 appointed on the California State Geological Survey and talking 

 with Prof. Whitxey, the head of the Survey, he said that Prof. Sil- 

 liman had averred that there was paying petroleum in California 

 but he, Prof. W. doubted it and used very strong Ianguage in clas- 

 sifying Prof. S, s assumed discovery. Time has shown him, Prof. W. 

 to be in the wrong and Prof. S. in the right for petroleum is found 

 in very large quantity in California. Asphaltum is also found there 

 plentiful and is now recognized as a constituent and part of the 

 flowing rock oil. 



When 1 began to study the Bacillaria. they were Diatoms then 

 I mapped out the various strafa of the earth which contained them. 

 I mean the so called marine Bacillaria containing Coscinodiscus and 

 various other discoid forms. I found that at Richmond in Virginia 

 were marine Bacillaria, or in fusoria as they were called, in the Uni- 

 ted States, there were Diatoms, but no asphaltum, although petro- 

 leum was found nearby, in Pennsylvania. In the island of Barbadoes 

 in the west Indies I found Diatoms and asphaltum coming from the 

 same rock. In Trinidad there are Diatoms in the rock that yeilds 

 the asphaltum of the celebrated lake. In California Diatoms and asphal- 

 tum are likewise. The other sfrata of Diatoms in South America near 

 Payta yeild it is said butumen-asphaltum it is called. 



Other strata in Denmark, Russia, Austria and Oran in Africa, and 

 perhaps Greece, and certainly Japan yeild Diatoms but no asphal- 

 tum. In Japan the Bacillarian deposit was not found at that Urne 

 or at least at that ti me I had not published the fìnding of tossii 

 marine Diatoms but at that place the no doubt asphaltum was also. 

 Ali of this made me think that there must be some conection for 

 the occurence of Bacillaria or Diatoms and asphaltum in these rocks, 

 the miocene tertiary of the geologist. This made me look farther 

 into the matter and gather faets whenever I could get them of fos- 

 sil marine Bacillaria and petroleum, asphaltum or rock oil occuring 



