EVIDENCES^?) OF WATER-DEPOSITION OF LOESS. 



The American Geohgist for April, 1904, contained two pa- 

 pers" portions of which were presented for discussion before 

 the Geological Society of America, at the St. Louis meeting, 

 by Professor Wright. In these papers an attempt is made to 

 sustain the theory that loess was deposited in water. Both 

 papers show a complete misconception of the arguments which 

 iu recent years have been offered in support of the ceolian 

 origin of the loess. 



In the opening portion of his paperf Professor Wright 

 attempts to present the writer's views on this question, and 

 summarizes them under four heads. He quotes a list of the 

 writer's papers, giving the results of studies of the loess, and 

 in this list includes two| in which practically no reference to 

 fossils is made, and omits several in which detailed studies are 

 :.1.. ; This is perhaps a matter of no great concern, but 

 it indicates carelessness, which perhaps extended to other por- 

 tions of the paper. 



Before passing to the discussion of Professor Wright's chief 

 arguments it is necessary to notice these four conclusions as 

 reported by him. The first one is substantially correct, for no 

 "distinctively water species," at least such as occur in large 



* Wright, G. Frederick, "Evidence of the Agency of Water in the 

 Distribution of the Loess in the Missouri Valley," pp. 205—222. 



Owen, Miss Luella A., "The Loess at St. Joseph," pp. 223—8. 



tP. 205, 1. c. 



X "Additional Observations on Surface Deposits in Iowa," Proc. la. 

 A -a 1. S-i., vol. iv, pp. 68-81. "The Distribution of Forest Trees in 

 Iowa," 1. c. , vol. vii, pp. 47—59. 



§ "Is tlieLoess of Aqueous Origin?" Proc. la. Acad. Sci., vol. v, pp. 

 32-45, 1899; Jour. Geol., vol. vii, pp. 122-140, 1899- "The Loess of 

 Iowa > : Vicinity," Bull. Lab. Nat. Hist., St. Univ. of Iowa, vol. 



190] ; Am. Geol , vol. xxviii, pp. 348—58. "Report on 

 Loess Molluscs of Pottawattamie county, " la. Geol. Sur. , vol. \i. pp. 

 261-5, 1901. 



