CHAPTER II 



THE EARTH'S ROCK FOUNDATIONS 



Sermons in stones and good in everything. SHAKESPEARE, As You 

 Like It. 



Has it ever been your good fortune to be possessed with a 

 mania for collecting? It matters little what the material is, 

 whether butterflies, beetles, stamps, coins, shells, or minerals, 

 the young collector generates a degree of enthusiasm for his pet 

 hobby that stimulates endeavor, carries him through volumes of 

 learned scientific discussion, sends him to geographies, encyclo- 

 pedias, and histories for concentrated study that no school course 

 arouses, makes him a purposeful correspondent, and frequently 

 leads him to books on travel, or the biographies of great explorers 

 with an appreciative fellow-feeling that leaves an indelible 

 imprint on impressionable youth. The writer recalls to this day 

 the delights of a boyhood spent among the rocky hills of northern 

 Michigan. It is a mining region whence came great quantities of 

 the world's best iron and copper, with some silver, gold, and 

 other mineral products. Many a Saturday or holiday was 

 occupied in wandering with hammer and specimen bag over the 

 rock dumps at the mine, or in rambling over the hills in search 

 of new finds. And what thrills came when some new speci- 

 men was found to add to the cabinet! Of course there were 

 chums who were also enthusiasts. I recall how Charlie and 

 I had for months cast longing eyes on a "vug" or pocket 

 in a great quartz vein that went zigzagging down the face 

 of a rock wall in one of the open-pit mines. We knew that 

 such a place was likely to yield some fine quartz crystals. But 

 it was 50 feet down the precipitous side to the pocket, and 

 another sheer drop of as much more to the bottom. Finally, one 



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