﻿l6 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 76 



perience in this field, together with the assistance of Mr. Norman H. 

 Boss of the jMuseuni's paleontok)gical force, who joined the expe- 

 dition on June 5. were largely responsible for the successful outcome 

 of the operations. 



The work of quarrying these often fragile bones from the ledge of 

 rock without doing irreparable damage is a slow and tedious operation, 

 involving the skill of both the stone cutter and the miner. Further 

 difificulty is encountered in handling by primitive methods the immense 

 blocks of rock enclosing the bones, with the subsequent arduous work 

 of boxing and transportation. The largest block quarried, containing 

 the sacrum with attached hip bones, weighed nearly 6.000 pounds 

 when readv for shipment. The transportation of the boxes to the rail- 

 road involved a haul by teams of 150 miles across country and over a 

 range of mountains 9,100 feet alwve sea level. However, 34 large 

 boxes having a coml)ined weight of over 25 tons were safely- 

 transported. 



The expedition resulted in the acquisition of sufficient material for 

 a good skeletal mount of Diplodocits which, it is estimated, will 

 exceed 80 feet in length with a height at the hips of 14 feet. 



COLLECTING FOSSIL FOOTPRINTS IN VIRGINIA 



In September Mr. Charles W. Gilmore, curator of vertebrate pale- 

 ontology. United States National MuseuuL visited the farm of 

 Mr. F. C. Littleton, near Aldie. Loudoun County. Virginia, for the 

 jnirpose of investigating the reported discovery of fossil footprints. 

 In excavations made by Mr. Littleton in the red Triassic shale in 

 quest of flagstone, numerous footprints were to be observed. The,sc 

 occur in four distinct horizons in a vertical distance of perhai:)S 100 

 feet. In two instances at least prints were found in successive la\ers. 

 Three-toed imprints j^redominate though they vary in size from a 

 length of three to fourteen inches. A few tracks were noticed having 

 four toes, evidently terminated with wide, flat unguals. All of these are 

 probably of dinosaurian origin, but a few small 4- or 5-toed tracks 

 with traces of sharp claws perha])s pertain to some other grou]). 



While as a whole the tracks bear a striking similarity to those from 

 the Trias of the Connecticut Valley, a critical study and com]:)arison 

 of them would be most interesting. Thev are nf further interest as 

 being the first footprints to have been found in the State of Virgim'a. 



Through the courtesy of T^lr. Littleton, Mr. (iilmore again visited 

 the locality and with the assistance of Mr. N. II. Boss collected a fine 

 .slab, two by twelve feet, on wliieh were the imprints of a 3-toe(l 



