472 AURIFEROUS GRAVEL MAN IN CALIFORNIA. 



inexpert observers, and (2) that all observations were recorded at sec- 

 ond hand. Affidavits can not redeem it. Nothing- short of abundant 

 expert testimon}^ will convince the critical mind that a Tertiary race of 

 men using symmetrically shaped and beautiful implements, wearing 

 necklaces of wampum and polished beads of marble or travertine ])ored 

 accurately with revolving drills, and having- a religious system so 

 highly developed that at least two forms of ceremonial stones were 

 specialized, could hav^e occupied the American continent long enough 

 to develop this marked degree of culture without leaving some really 

 distinctive traces of its existence, something different from the ordi- 

 nary belongings of our present Indian tribes. 



EXPLANATION OF I'LATE XVI. 



View from '"Cape Horn," on the Central Pacific Railway, near 

 Colfax, California, looking down the v^ alley of the North Fork of the 

 American River. 



This valley serves as an illustration of the vast erosion that has taken 

 place since the period to which auriferous gravel man is assigned. The 

 depth of the gorge at the base of the distant plateau-like ridge is 

 2,000 feet. The gold-bearing gravels, said to yield such plentiful 

 remains of man, were laid down in the beds of Tertiary rivers that 

 meandered the region before the present great valleys were conceived. 

 Many of the ancient channels buried in Tertiary volcanic deposits 

 have been explored for gold, and the tunnels follow the winding water 

 courses through the very crests of the distant ridges seen in this 

 picture. 



