24 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 



when, uy a result of correspondence between the Institution and the 

 General Land Office, the further removal of fossil trees has been 

 prohibited. 



Prof. Lester F. Ward visited the region in November, 1899, and 

 the results of his examination have been published by the Department 

 of the Interior. 



The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution received the following 

 letter from the honorable Commissioner of the General Land Office: 



PETRIFIED FOREST, ARIZONA. 



Department of the Interior, 



General Land Office, 

 WasMngton^ D. C. , June 17, 1899. 

 Sir: I am in receipt of a certified copy of a memorial by the legis- 

 lature of Arizona praving that certain lands in Apache County, Ariz., 

 in the vicinity of the town of Holbrook, known as the "Petrified For- 

 est," be withdrawn from entry with a view to creating a reservation 

 or national park for the purpose of preser\dng the natural wonders 

 and curiosities of the same. 



I ha\'e the honor to request that you will kindly inform me whether 

 the records of the Smithsonian Institution furnish any information 

 respecting this locality indicating that the scenic features of the same 

 are of such a nature as to render it desirable, in the interest of the 

 public, to set these lands apart as a national park. I will ]>e pleased 

 to receive a full expression of your views on this subject, and also as 

 to the importance of preserving the mineralized formations iu that 

 region. 



Very respectfully^ Binger Hermann, 



Commiis8ion£r. 

 The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. 



To this letter the following reply was made: 



Smithsonian Institution, 



• ^V((xhlngt(m, I). (J., July 7, 1899. 



Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your comuumi- 

 cation of the 17th ultimo requesting information concerning the Petri- 

 fied Forest near Holbrook, in Arizona, as well as an expression of 

 opinion concei'ning the desirability of setting aside these lands as a 

 national park, and beg to furnish the following statement: 



The region near Holbrook, Apache County, Arizona, known as the 

 "Petrified Forest," "Chalcedony Park," and " Lithodendron (stone 

 trees) Vane}^" is of great interest because of the abundance of its 

 beautiful petrified coniferous trees, as well as of its scenic features. 

 The trees lie scattered about in great profusion, but none stand erect 

 in their original place of growth as do many in the Yellowstone 

 National Park. The National Museum possesses three splendid trunks 

 collected there 1)}' Lieutenant Hegewald at the request of General 

 Sherman. 



The best popular account of this region is given \^y Mr. George F. 

 Kunz, and is as follows: 



