Silicified Wood from Pyramid Park — Haiuje. 75 



[Paper J.} 



A. MtSStON^ARY's NOTES O^ A SILICIFIED WOOD FROM PYRAMID 



PARK. — Bev, L. J. Hauge. 



[Note — The editor has omitted several paragraphs and made a few verlial changes 

 in the following paper.] 



My wanderings in life began in a land ot low islands, with no 

 rocky cliffs nor mountains of importance. 



In that land and at that time geology was not taught in our 

 schools; still one of our professors used to say: " Look at the 

 stones, boys !" and this injunction of our worthy teacher I have 

 now followed, as opportunity has been given, for over a quarter of 

 a century. * * * In my collection are over 700 species of 

 wood, leaves and other parts of plants, mainly from the glacial 

 drift of Minnesota and neighboring states. 



Some of the specimens are taken from quite a depth in the 

 ground; here in Minnesota 85 to 45 feet; farther west, deeper; 

 north of Bismarck, Dak., sonid 50 miles, and on the east bank of 

 the Missouri river, was found a stump of some height and one foot 

 in diameter. The stump stood 59 feet below the surface of the 

 ground and about 25 feet below tlie first bed of coal. The entire 

 stump was solidly petrified. 



In McCook county, Dak., was found, 67 feet below the sur- 

 face of the prairie, a well preserved piece of wood, dry and hard, 

 but not at all petrified. This wood seems to be cedar, and I might 

 here say that of the many specimens apparently of this wood there 

 are found all stages of perservation, from the clear non-mineral- 

 ized to the completely petrified condition. Well diggers find 

 many specimens of this character, and their stories about some of 

 them are ver}^ good, though the evidence is sometimes wanting. 



Leaves are not often found well preserved in the drift, and 

 only two or three species of fruit have come to my hand. But to 

 the west of the Missouri river large numbers of leaves are found 

 and often the specimens are both large and beautiful. 



Last fall I secured the exceedingly beautiful piece of petrified 

 wood,* which [ now present to your Academy, and [ discovered it 

 in the following manner: I joined a little party of hunters, 

 partly for adventure and game, but mainly to see and if possible 

 have a talk with old man Sitting Bull, who was then between the 



*This is a large specimen of silicified wo:>d. 



