﻿HISTORICAL 
  REVIEW 
  

  

  PERIODS 
  OF 
  INVESTIGATION 
  

  

  First 
  Period 
  

   From 
  the 
  Eari^iest 
  Explorations 
  to 
  the 
  Year 
  1867 
  

  

  Earliest 
  explorers. 
  — 
  Few 
  and 
  desultory 
  indeed 
  are 
  the 
  contri- 
  

   butions 
  made 
  to 
  the 
  geological 
  literature 
  of 
  this 
  State 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  

   middle 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  century. 
  As 
  might 
  naturally 
  be 
  expected, 
  

   it 
  was 
  the 
  Mississippi, 
  the 
  great 
  river, 
  that 
  first 
  attracted 
  and 
  

   held 
  the 
  attention 
  of 
  the 
  earliest 
  explorers 
  and 
  naturalists 
  in 
  

   this 
  region. 
  Commerce 
  dictated 
  that 
  its 
  mouths 
  should 
  be 
  

   explored 
  and 
  mapped 
  at 
  an 
  early 
  date, 
  and 
  in 
  1722 
  P. 
  Charlevoix 
  

   accomplished 
  this 
  task 
  in 
  a 
  highly 
  creditable 
  manner.* 
  He 
  

   argued 
  in 
  a 
  truly 
  scientific 
  spirit 
  that 
  "the 
  quantity 
  of 
  shoals 
  

   and 
  little 
  islands 
  that 
  have 
  been 
  seen 
  to 
  form 
  in 
  the 
  various 
  

   mouths 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  during 
  the 
  past 
  twenty 
  years" 
  leave 
  no 
  

   doubt 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  manner 
  and 
  comparatively 
  recent 
  date 
  of 
  forma- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  lower 
  delta 
  region. 
  

  

  Coxe. 
  — 
  If 
  the 
  reference 
  of 
  Coxe 
  to 
  the 
  River 
  Natchitock 
  can 
  

   be 
  taken 
  to 
  mean 
  the 
  Red 
  river, 
  and 
  it 
  seems 
  quite 
  probable 
  

   that 
  they 
  are 
  the 
  same, 
  the 
  salt 
  springs 
  in 
  northern 
  lyouisiana 
  

   were 
  known 
  and 
  worked 
  in 
  the 
  very 
  early 
  history 
  of 
  this 
  country. 
  

   He 
  says, 
  " 
  Ten 
  or 
  twelve 
  leagues 
  higher 
  on 
  the 
  west 
  side," 
  [of 
  

   the 
  Mississippi] 
  ' 
  ' 
  is 
  the 
  River 
  Natchitock, 
  which 
  has 
  a 
  course 
  of 
  

   man}^ 
  hundred 
  miles 
  ; 
  and 
  after 
  it 
  is 
  ascended 
  about 
  one 
  hun- 
  

   dred, 
  there 
  are 
  many 
  springs, 
  pitts, 
  and 
  lakes 
  which 
  afford 
  most 
  

   excellent 
  common 
  salt 
  in 
  great 
  plenty, 
  wherewith 
  [the 
  Indians] 
  

   trade 
  with 
  neigboring 
  nations 
  for 
  other 
  commodities 
  they 
  want. 
  

   Upon 
  the 
  river 
  inhabit 
  not 
  only 
  the 
  Nachitocks, 
  Naguteeres, 
  

   Natsohocks 
  but 
  higher 
  several 
  other 
  nations, 
  "f 
  On 
  the 
  next 
  

  

  * 
  Thomassy, 
  Geologie 
  Pratique 
  de 
  la 
  lyouisiane 
  accompagne 
  de6 
  planches, 
  

   New 
  Orleans 
  and 
  Paris, 
  4°, 
  263 
  pp., 
  figs., 
  i860. 
  See 
  pp. 
  27-28. 
  

  

  t 
  A 
  description 
  of 
  the 
  English 
  province 
  of 
  Carolina, 
  by 
  the 
  Spainards 
  

   called 
  Florida 
  and 
  by 
  the 
  French 
  La 
  Louisiane, 
  and 
  also 
  of 
  the 
  great 
  and 
  

   famous 
  River 
  Meschacebe, 
  or 
  Missisipi, 
  and 
  the 
  five 
  vast 
  navigable 
  lakes 
  

  

  